Alpha to Omega
by mrytale2-5
Summary: Sequel to Tempe Secrets, set three months after the end of that story. AU growing H/P, JJ/Rossi. A frightening unsub emerges that tests the whole team as Natasha settles living in DC. As ever the rights belong to CBS. Back after a long break!
1. Chapter 1  Alpha

A/N – So this is the sequel to Tempe Secrets, Emily & Hotch trying hard to establish their relationship and Natasha about to start at Georgetown. As ever I don't own anything...

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* * *

Chapter 1 – Alpha**

Dropping her bag onto the floor as the door shut behind her, Emily's eyes instantly shot to the alarm panel to her right but she saw that it had already been disabled and a wry smile crossed her face as she saw the empty water bottle laying sideways on the kitchen worktop and her daughter's running trainers strewn across the floor. Emily walked into the kitchen and immediately tidied up the clutter that Natasha had left before her eyes caught the clock on the oven as it clicked around to 5pm and the lack of sleep suddenly dawned on her, quickly Emily poured and drank a glass of water before she picked up her bag and walked up the stairs, the sound of water running got louder as she reached the top. Emily headed straight to her bedroom, dropping her bag at the end of the bed before she collapsed on the bed, she closed her eyes but she didn't fall asleep.

Natasha turned the shower off and quickly dried herself off before she walked across to her bedroom, humming to herself as she pulled on her underwear, a pair of jogging bottoms and one of her mom's FBI t-shirts.

"I hope you haven't left your sweaty clothes on the bathroom floor!"

Natasha immediately jumped at the sound but almost instantaneously relaxed as her mother's voice rang out.

"Umm, sorry mom!"

Natasha ran out of her room and stood in the doorway of the other bedroom as Emily opened her eyes and slowly turned her head towards her daughter.

"I wasn't expecting you home until later, I thought I'd have time to clear up before then!"

"It's ok, I'm just glad to be home."

Natasha slowed walked into the room, she saw the sad look etched on her mom's face as she watched the hazelnut eyes move and stare up at the ceiling. Natasha walked around and climbed onto the bed, lying next to her mom as she slipped her hand into her mother's grasp and shivered slightly as she felt the cold skin.

"I'm glad you're home too."

Natasha rested her head on her mom's shoulder, she knew not to ask any questions, that her mother would talk when she was ready.

* * *

Emily opened her eyes, blinking them several times as she tried to focus, her mind slightly disorientated as she realised where she was. Turning her head Emily noticed that it was now dark outside and that she was in the comfort of her own bed with the warmth of Natasha still laying beside her.

"Hey."

Natasha moved her head as she spoke, using her elbow to prop herself up on the bed as she looked at her mother's tired eyes.

"Sorry I didn't mean to fall asleep."

"That's ok, you looked like you needed the rest. Do you want me to get you something to eat?"

Emily placed her hand over her mouth as she yawned, her stomach growling loudly in unison.

"Thanks sweetie that sounds great. I think I'm going to go and grab a shower."

Natasha smiled as she swung her legs off the bed, her bare feet padding across the floor before she stopped at the door and turned back.

"Pasta?"

"With Granddad's sauce?"

"Of course."

Natasha grinned as she saw a smile creep across her mother's face, satisfied that the memories of the last cast were slowly ebbing away Natasha carried on walking down towards the kitchen.

* * *

The smell was intense as Emily walked out of the bathroom and back into her bedroom, the contents of her bag were strewn on the bed as Emily gathered up the clothes and dumped them in the laundry basket without even sorting whether or not they were clean or dirty, she then quickly repacked the bag, having learnt early on in her BAU career that it was always good to be prepared. Only after that job had been done did she throw on some clothes and followed the enticing smell downstairs. Emily walked into the kitchen and grabbed a bottle of red wine and two glasses, taking them over to the dining table where Natasha was laying the table

"It smells wonderful."

"Thanks mom, do you feel better?"

"Well a little bit more awake."

"Good, sit down, you probably haven't eaten properly since you left."

Emily went to open her mouth but as she saw Natasha raise an eyebrow she just grinned.

* * *

Natasha pushed her plate away and stood up.

"Couch?"

"Definitely, leave the plates I'll sort them out in the morning."

Emily refilled the glasses with the last of the wine as she followed her daughter over as they sat down together, with Natasha curling her legs up and tucking her toes underneath her mother's legs.

"So you filled out the forms?"

"Yes, I hand delivered them."

"Good."

Emily nodded as she spoke, glad that Natasha was returning to college but also relieved that she had decided to apply to nearby Georgetown and was happy to continue living with her.

"But if you ever need some space, you know for you and Aaron, then you only need to say the word, Garcia has said that I am more than welcome to crash at her place."

Natasha smiled as she spoke, watching her mother's reaction carefully as she shook her head.

"Sometimes Natasha I think that you have been spending far too much time with Morgan! You know that Aaron and I are taking things slowly, not just because of our jobs but we've also got you and Jack to think about."

"Mom I'm twenty one years old! You're happy, Aaron's happy, Jack's ecstatic and adores you!"

"Yes well, I've been hurt too many times Natasha especially lately, I'm not going to be burnt again."

Natasha sighed as she moved down the couch and hugged her mom.

"Sorry mom, I didn't mean to upset you."

"It's ok sweetie, I'm just tired. I'm going to go up, you won't stay up too late?"

"No I want to go for a run first thing."

"Ok."

Emily gently lifted Natasha's head up and kissed her daughter on the cheek.

"Night mom."

"Night sweetie, I love you."

"I love you too."

Natasha let go as Emily dragged her exhausted body up to bed, grabbing the remote Natasha flicked on the television, quickly turning the volume down as she searched for something to watch. Finally Natasha settle on watching Project Runway and she picked up her iPad, checking her email as she semi-watched the program. After sending an email to Garcia Natasha rested the tablet on her lap and made herself comfortable, engrossing herself in the program until her iPad suddenly started vibrating. Quickly Natasha picked it up and concentrated on the screen, her heart pounding hard and fast as she realised that it was Garcia's program that had been activated and her grandmother was on the move.


	2. Chapter 2  Contrapasso

**A/N - thanks to everyone who has reviewed and alerted this story, this chapter is very unsub heavy but it is crucial to the rest of the story and after this we will be flashing back to our favourite characters. I had hoped to update more frequently unfortunately am dealing with a family crisis at the moment so apologies in advance if I don't update soon. Please read, review and most importantly enjoy...**

Chapter 2- Contrapasso

As he walked through the dark streets, heading towards Monroe Park, he smiled at the thought of the beginning. This was going to be the first, the easiest, leaving him time to concentrate on the others and keeping hidden until it was time for him to announce his presence. He walked around for five minutes, staring hard at all of them sitting, drinking, smoking. He reached into his pocket and brought out his cell phone, quickly scrolling through the menus until he brought up the photo of who he was searching for. One of his biggest fascinations was research and the previous twelve, almost thirteen months, had been spent meticulously searching for the right people and perfecting the techniques in order for the whole project to be successful. He stopped momentarily to concentrate on the image displayed on the screen, a photo taken two days ago in the light, he had to ensure that the image was accurate, as who knew what state he would be in when he eventually took him. Once he had the image fixed in his mind he placed the device back in his pocket and walked towards the bench where the three men were sitting, sharing a bottle of cheap whiskey.

"Evening."

The three men looked at him, a look of puzzlement and cautiousness crossed their faces, he smiled widely, it was the exact response he had been expecting and it brought him great gratitude that the plan was working.

"Here, now leave us alone."

He held out two fifty dollar bills which the two men eagerly accepted and walked off leaving him alone to sit down on the bench next to the middle aged man.

"I don't do God."

"Sorry?"

"If you have to 'rescue' me, don't bother, others have tried before and failed."

He just laughed and the stench of the man sitting next to him raced down his nostrils.

"Oh don't worry, God has nothing on me. I just need some help, there is two hundred in it for you if you are interested?"

He held the money out in his hand, wrapped around the neck of a bottle of Jack Daniel's, a proposition that he knew would prove enticing.

"Sure, what do you want?"

"Come for a walk with me, my place is only five minutes away, I'm doing some research on the long term homeless and would like to ask you some questions and take a few photos."

The dishevelled guy nodded, slightly inebriated he was cold and hungry, hoping for a warm meal he stood up and walked beside the stranger as they made their way out of the park.

* * *

Natasha lay on her bed, staring up at the ceiling, too scared to sleep. She could hear the soft snoring floating across the hall as her mother caught up with the sleep she had missed out on while she was away. Sighing heavily Natasha flopped on her side, her hand reaching out in the dark as she found her iPad once again, willing herself to concentrate she powered the computer up and brought up Garcia's program once again. It was if she needed to convince herself once again, that her mind and eyes had deceived her earlier. But as the map loaded and the red dot blinked, moving steadily westwards she knew that she had not been mistaken. The promise that she had made her mother a few months earlier sounded in her head, that she would let her know if her father or grandmother made a move to contact them, but Natasha wanted to know for sure what was happening before she said anything and that meant that first thing in the morning she would have to go and see Garcia, alone.

* * *

He unlocked the door in the abandoned building and pushed his victim inside, he was far younger and stronger and now that they were alone he had no problem of overpowering the other man if he needed to.

"So this is your place?"

"It is where I do some of my research."

They walked up the stairs and into what looked like a makeshift office, he sat the man on the chair and before he had a chance to take another breath the handcuffs were locked tight around his wrists, seconds later the ones around his ankles followed.

"Shit man! What are you doing?"

"Welcome to hell."

He smiled, showing off his bright white, perfectly aligned teeth before he powered up the machine.

"I'm surprised that this is going to be your first."

He pushed up the man's sleeve and saw the unadorned skin, he knew that the mark wasn't going take long but it was part of the plan, along with the photos that he would shortly take, the notes that he would write.

"Keep still or it will only hurt more!"

"You son of a..."

He didn't get a chance to finish as the pain suddenly hit his body, the black ink marking his pale white skin.

He smiled at the finished mark, focusing the camera in as he took several shots of the open gates he had tattooed onto the man.

"Are you ready now?"

The perfect smile returned once again as he saw the fear in the man's face, the other camera was already set up, the box ready for him to release them.

"What, what are you going to do?"

"Come with me and see, you coward."

He hauled him up and dragged his body along the corridor, stopping fifty yards down the warehouse he opened another door, this room was painted white and had a bright light hanging down from the middle of the ceiling.

"Welcome to the Vestibule."

He laughed as he shoved him inside and locked the metal door, returning to the office where he could watch from a safe distance. He sat down behind the desk and stared at the screen, laughing as the man ran around trying to find a way out.

"So NOW you want to do something in life, a pity it is too late!"

A broad smile crossed his face as he pressed a button on the keyboard, instantly the lid on the box opened and hundreds of bees, wasps and hornets flew out.

It was pitch black as he walked down the alley, the body cast over his shoulder, the bench was less than a hundred yards away and his surveillance had assured him that this was the time of night that it was safest to deposit him. As he sat him on the bench, he placed an empty bottle of Jack Daniel's in his hand, the bones cracking as he manipulated them. A minute later he was on his way again, he didn't stop to look back, he knew that he couldn't, he wouldn't be here again, his sparse belongings were already stashed in the car, ready for him to drive to his next destination, Fredrick Maryland.


	3. Chapter 3  Nu

A/N – as ever I don't own any of the characters...

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Chapter 3 – Nu**

Emily stretched her arms out as she willed her body awake, glancing at the clock she blinked a couple of times before she realised that the display wasn't lying and that it really was 10am. Silently cursing that she had slept so late Emily jumped out of bed, she expected to hear music, movement from downstairs but was surprised to hear only silence. Emily's eyes cast onto the closed door and she quietly walked over, putting her ear half to it before she entered. Gently she opened the door and was taken aback to see Natasha sprawled out on the bed fast asleep, Emily moved swiftly over and perched on the edge of the bed, carefully placing her hand on the top of her daughter's head.

"Hey sweetie, are you ok?"

Emily frowned as she spoke, noticing how red and tired her daughter's eyes were. Natasha blinked her eyes and offered a weak smiled to her mother.

"I've just got a really bad headache."

"Ok I'll get you something. I take it you want to spend the day in bed?"

Natasha slowly nodded her head.

"Do you want me to stay?"

"No go and see Aaron and Jack, I'll be fine."

"Ok I'll just get you some water and some painkillers."

Emily smiled as she stroked Natasha's hair before she stood up and walked out of the room. Natasha sighed heavily as she struggled to open her eyes, she wasn't lying her head was really pounding but she wasn't going to stay in bed as soon as her mother had left she was going round to see Garcia.

* * *

Garcia sat on her sofa, her feet curled up and tucked under her legs as her laptop was perched on her lap, her mind fully concentrated on the game she was playing when she was suddenly interrupted by a loud knock at the door. Garcia sighed as she quickly saved the game, not rushing as she stood up, she had only walked a few steps when the person knocked again.

"Ok, Ok I'm coming!"

Garcia quickened her steps as she reached the door, she looked through the peep hole and took a rapid intake of breath as she saw Natasha standing outside, her eyes red and her head bowed, instantly Garcia opened the door and ushered the young woman inside, shutting the door before she spoke.

"What's happened sweetie? Is it Emily?"

Natasha shook her head as she followed Garcia over to the sofa, she quickly sat down and opened her bag, passing her iPad over to the concerned analyst.

"The Ambassador."

Natasha only spoke the two words as Garcia nodded, her eyes fixed on the screen as Natasha pulled up her knees to her chest, resting her still aching head on her knees.

"Right so she is on the move. Hang on I need my laptop in order to find out what is going on."

Garcia smiled at Natasha as she reached down and picked up her laptop from the floor.

"It won't take long sweetie, have you said anything to Emily?"

"No not yet, she is spending the day with Aaron and Jack, I didn't want to ruin that."

"I understand sweetie. Aaahhhh here we go, she's booked on an American Airlines flight from London to JFK, she's due to land at 4pm this afternoon."

"Why is she coming back? I thought if anyone would it would be my father, not...not her."

Natasha stuttered slightly as she struggled to keep her emotions in check, just when her life had started to get back on track she had to cope with yet another curveball.

"Hang on Tasha, umm. According to her diary she has a meeting at the United Nations first thing tomorrow and is booked on a flight back to London tomorrow evening. She's booked at the Hilton for one night only."

"So you don't think she'll contact me?"

Garcia shook her head as she put her laptop and Natasha's iPad on the floor.

"I really don't know sweetie, but I doubt it. Look let me get you a cup of tea, I want you to relax a little before you go home, ok?"

"Thanks Garcia, I didn't know who else to go to and I knew that you would be able to find some answers for me."

"So are you going to keep your promise to Emily?"

Garcia looked seriously at Natasha, as much as she loved her she didn't want to keep anything from one of her closest friends.

"I guess so but I'm worried about what she'll do."

Garcia nodded as she flicked the kettle on.

"It's the right thing to do Tasha."

Natasha leant her head backwards and rested it on the soft cushions, her eyes closed as she relaxed slightly.

* * *

Emily grinned as she took a hold of Jack's hand whilst Hotch paid the entrance fee, the look on the young boy's face was priceless as he excitedly started planning their route for the day.

"So lions first, then elephants and then the sealions!"

"Ok Jack don't use up all of your energy before we've even entered the zoo!"

Hotch grinned at his son who nodded at him before the young boy turned to face Emily.

"Tasha would have liked this."

"She's sorry that she couldn't be here Jack, but she isn't feeling very well."

"Daddy make sure that you take plenty of pictures and then I can tell Tasha all about it!"

"Good idea Jack, now was it parrots first?"

Emily pulled a face as she looked at the young boy as he screwed up his mouth and shook his head vigorously.

"No Emily, LIONS!"

The three of them laughed and walked along the path towards the signpost so that they could go and see the lions.

* * *

Hotch slumped down on the sofa next to Emily putting his hands over his eyes as Emily laughed softly beside him.

"Well that didn't take long, I think we exhausted him today!"

"Or he exhausted us, why is it that I find it impossible to get up?"

"Because you want to stay here with me?"

Hotch moved his hands and grinned widely at Emily, eagerly showing her his dimples which he knew she found irresistible.

"That invitation is so tempting but Natasha..."

"Is in bed with a headache, leave a message and I'm sure that she'll understand."

Hotch leaned in closer, quickly capturing Emily's lips with his own, his heart pounding fast as he felt Emily's moan escape into his mouth.

"Ok you win I'll stay!"

Emily pulled away slightly as she spoke before her lips captured Hotch's once again as his strong arms lifted her up and sat her on top of him.


	4. Chapter 4  Limbo

A/N – sorry for the long wait for the update, real life catching up with me and am having a few problems with my eyes at the moment so working on the computer is not ideal! That said I hope that there aren't too many mistakes! As ever I don't own the Criminal Minds characters, thanks to everyone who is still reading, reviewing and alerting it does really inspire.

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Chapter 4 – Limbo**

The file was spread out on the small table that she had pulled out from the arm of her chair but her mind was struggling to read the notes that were necessary for tomorrow's meeting, instead her eyes were cast out of the window as the plane soared over the Atlantic. Elizabeth Prentiss, for one of the first times in her life, was scared. Scared of the consequences of her returning but it was a meeting that she couldn't get out of and she had tried. All that she could hope now was that her arrival and departure would be swift and not arose suspicion, she knew how much she had hurt not just her daughter but her granddaughter too, many people and also told her and warned her from making any contact and stepping back on American soil. Elizabeth took a heavy sigh and started to tidy up the file, the plane had started to gradually descend, this trip was going to be hard but there was no way that she was going to contact her family, it was far too soon to start rebuilding the fractured relationship, it was time to put all those thoughts away into the back of her head and concentrate on the diplomatic reasons that had brought her to New York.

* * *

With her diplomatic status it didn't take too long for Elizabeth to collect her suitcase and walk to the area where her designated driver would be waiting for her. The security team at the Embassy had shown her his photo and file before she had left so once her eyes found the figure she strode purposefully towards him.

"Ambassador Prentiss?"

"Yes. Steven?"

"Ma'am."

He confidently took her bag and led the way out of the airport and towards the black sedan, he made sure that she was safely seated in the rear seat before he stowed the suitcase in the trunk, smiling as he did, if only she knew what was laying where the spare tyre should have been she wouldn't have gone willingly with him.

"So how long are you back for ma'am?"

He looked in the mirror and saw the Ambassador give him a stern look, he knew that he was supposed to just drive and protect but his intense desire for information was too strong.

"Just under 48 hours."

"Only a flying visit then? No time to catch up with friends and family?"

Elizabeth was staring out of the window, trying to blank the annoying agents voice from her mind, it had been an arduous journey so far and all she wanted to do was shut herself away in her hotel room.

"Sorry I'm here on business and am extremely tired."

"Of course ma'am, I'll get you to the hotel quickly and safely."

He smiled broadly as he glanced back towards the passenger, he knew that he was neither memorable nor instantly forgettable, he had struck the perfect balance yet again.

* * *

As he closed the trunk once again and handed the suitcase over the hotel bellboy he nodded politely towards the Ambassador, waiting patiently until she was safely ushered into the hotel but then he knew that it was time to go again, with what he had hidden in the trunk it wasn't safe to stay still for too long.

* * *

Elizabeth's head was throbbing as she tipped the bellboy and locked the door behind him, placing the 'Do Not Disturb' sign on the door handle as it closed firmly. The preparations for tomorrow's meeting had all be laid out in the file, ready for her to read and digest so that she could contribute fully to the discussion, she did not want to let herself or her country down but she also knew that there was no way at the moment that her head could process anything. Elizabeth threw her suit jacket on the back of the chair, kicked off her heels, not even caring about how they fell haphazardly as she just walked over to the bed and collapsed onto it, the mental exhaustion finally catching up with her.

* * *

He waited until he had left the city, driving for over an hour before he turned off the interstate and stopped on a quiet road. He opened up the glove compartment and brought out his notebooks, placing them on the passenger seat he ordered them carefully before he selected the right one. He gently opened the book and leafed through the pages until he reached her profile as he grabbed his pen, biting the lid off and keeping it squeezed in between his teeth as he amended the physical description and her current location. He paused momentarily before he also added the fact that not only was it a short visit but she also had no desire to contact either her daughter or granddaughter, a fact which just pushed her higher up on his potential list. After he had finished he placed the notebooks back and carried on his way, he had a delivery to make, an outcast from his religious family was about to be brought home. There was a lovely grassy field on the outskirts of Fredrick, Maryland that was where the body in the trunk was due to be laid to rest, with a perfect circle and the Roman Numeral **I** freshly tattooed onto his right forearm.


	5. Chapter 5  Beta

**Chapter 5 – Beta**

Emily slipped her key in the door, the smile from the previous evening had yet to leave her face, and though it would have been great to spend the day with Hotch and Jack she knew that she ought to get home and check on her daughter. Emily closed the door and walked into the condo, casting her eyes towards the kitchen she spotted Natasha sitting on one of the stools frowning hard at the piece of paper in front of her.

"Good morning sweetie!"

Emily bent down and kissed her daughter on top of her head.

"Well somebody is happy, I take it you had a good night? Maybe not too much sleep?"

Natasha grinned cheekily at her mother who felt her cheeks instantly redden.

"I, oh crap I need some coffee!"

"Its ok mom, I'm only teasing you, and you know that I am happy for you."

Natasha playfully tapped her mom on the back as Emily walked around and helped herself to a large cup of coffee before she turned and sat down next to Natasha.

"So what's got your brain stretched this morning?"

"Uurgghh forms! Why are there so many?"

Emily snorted with laughter as she saw the mound of forms Natasha had in front of her.

"So these are from Georgetown?"

"Yes, I should have filled them out last week but I got sidetracked and now I've got to finish them by tomorrow."

"I like to see that my sense of organisation has been passed down to you!"

Natasha felt a smile creep across her face but then her eyes caught the iPad just away from her hand and she knew that she couldn't put it off any longer.

"Mom?"

"What is it sweetie?"

Natasha kept quiet as she reached over and passed the iPad to her mom who frowned as she touched the screen, her eyes immediately drawn to the red icon.

"Tasha?"

Emily's tone instantly changed, with a harshness cold edge to it.

"I went to see Garcia yesterday."

"So the headache and tiredness was due to this?"

Natasha just bowed her head, she knew that she should have told her mother straight away and although she had her reasons they would not be taken into account.

"She's only here for a meeting, she landed yesterday afternoon and is leaving tonight. She is staying in New York, and if you look at the current location you will see that she is in the United Nations building."

Emily shook her head as she placed the iPad back down on the kitchen worktop before she turned and looked at her daughter, their eyes meeting as the tears welled up from both women.

"I am going to New York."

The words were spoken slowly, a breath taken between each one, although each word was spoken carefully, softly with no malice, with almost no emotion.

"No mom, please!"

Emily just shook her head again as she stood up.

"Please mom, it's not worth it, she'll be gone by the time you get there, she's just here for work she's not here to stir up trouble."

Emily closed her eyes as her panicked daughter spoke, breathing steadily she composed herself as she took a step closer and placed her hands on Natasha's shoulders.

"Natasha I need to do this."

As quickly and firmly as the words came out Emily turned away and walked towards the door, grabbing her purse Natasha was still sitting with her mouth aghast as the door shut. It took Natasha a good five minutes to compose herself, she knew that the reaction wasn't going to be good but she hadn't expected her mom to go off like she had. Natasha stayed sitting as she reached and grabbed her cell, using her index finger she quickly found the contact she needed and waited impatiently as the phone rang.

"Hello?"

"Aaron it's Natasha I need your help."


	6. Chapter 6  Xi

**Chapter 6 – Xi**

Natasha stayed sitting on the stool, her eyes cast through the condo as she stared out of the window and over the city, she had lost all concept of time as her mind was full of worry and concern. She ran her fingers through her hair and started to wonder when the pounding in her head would stop but as her hands moved away from her face Natasha realised that the sound was coming from the door rather than her head. Quickly she brushed the few tears away from her eyes and slowly she got up and walked over to her door.

"JJ?"

Natasha stood in the doorway, a frown across her face as JJ quickly placed a firm but warm hand on her arm and led her into the condo, shutting the door behind her.

"So are you ok?"

JJ sat Natasha down on the stool and smiled.

"She's, she's gone."

"I know sweetie. Hotch dropped Jack off earlier."

"I'm sorry I didn't know who else to call, I didn't know what to do."

JJ pulled the other stool closer as she sat down, she placed her hands on top of Natasha's and squeezed them in order to get the young woman to look at her.

"Shh Natasha, it's ok we understand. Dave has taken Henry and Jack to the park and we wanted to know if you wanted to come round ours for the day?"

Natasha couldn't help but smile back at JJ, the kindness and the warmth the BAU team had shown her since they had found out about her had been immense but she had always been close to JJ and she instantly nodded her head.

"Thanks JJ, it will be good to see the boys."

JJ grinned as she reached up and gently patted Natasha on the shoulders, smoothly the two of them stood up, pausing briefly as Natasha gathered up her cell, purse and keys before they walked out together.

* * *

The silence in the sedan was palpable as JJ drove, she cast her eyes towards Natasha and saw the worry across her face but as Natasha turned to face JJ she suddenly felt the need to break the tension in the confined space.

"I told her not to go, I wanted mom to stay, not to get involved, I wanted things to stay as they were."

JJ took a heavy breath as she slowed down and pulled into the drive of her suburban home, waiting until the engine had stopped before she turned and faced Natasha.

"Sweetie, Emily needs to do this for herself. The Ambassador hurt the both of you but she is meant to be Emily's mother, a mother shouldn't do that to her child. Emily needs to unburden herself, this isn't something that she can keep locked away in one of her perfect little boxes, it needs to be let out before it destroys her."

Natasha closed her eyes as JJ finished speaking, she knew that her older friend was right, she slowly peeled her eyes open and blinked the tears away as she nodded her head.

"Mom is slowly getting better at letting people in, you all accepted me without question and then there is her relationship with Aaron, it's getting closer and stronger, I don't want my grandmother ruining that."

JJ smiled as Natasha mentioned Aaron's name.

"Well at least you did the right thing by calling Hotch, he'll be there for Emily, he'll support her through this."

"I suppose that's the difference between us and the Ambassador."

JJ raised an eyebrow and looked quizzically at Natasha as the young woman grinned widely at her.

"We've got friends to help us."

JJ laughed as Natasha leant across and hugged her.

"Come on sweetie we'd better get in and rescue Dave."

"Thanks JJ, for everything."

JJ smiled as Natasha slowly let go of her and they climbed out of the sedan and headed towards the house and the boisterous boys inside.

* * *

The vehicle he sat in was different once again, he had learnt from others mistakes and at every opportunity he switched make, model and even colour. Today was going to be spent in the car, camera, binoculars, notebooks, pens and chewing gum all at hand. If he had to admit it then this might well be his favourite circle. The adaptation of his version of hell was truly unique and the person he had chosen was truly deserving of the fate. As he saw her emerge from the coffee shop he snapped a couple of photos, made all the more special as she suddenly decided on a public display of affection with her male companion. The captured he waited patiently as they said their goodbyes and parted to go on their separate ways, he now had enough information to add to his notes and was looking forward to the next day when he could put his plan into action but first of all he had to track down another vehicle that would be fit for his purpose.


	7. Chapter 7 Gamma

**Chapter 7 – Gamma – **

Hotch was driving fast on the interstate, heading northwards as he grabbed his cell and dialled Emily's number.

"Damn."

He held the cell as he tried to concentrate on the road, he knew that she was ignoring his calls and that he needed to try a different tack as he rang the one person he knew had the answers.

"Garcia?"

"Sir how can I help you?"

"I need you to tell me where the Ambassador is staying Garcia."

"Sir, I don't know."

Garcia stumbled over her words as she wondered what was going on."

"Garcia Emily is headed to New York, I'm following her but I'm a little way behind her."

"Oh."

Hotch sighed heavily as he heard silence on the other end of the line.

"The Hilton on 304 East 42nd Street. Sorry sir I didn't want to keep anything from you."

"I know Garcia, thank you."

"Look after her sir, make sure that she doesn't have any regrets."

Hotch smiled as he heard the warmth tempered with emotion in Garcia's voice.

"Of course Garcia, I'll see you soon."

Hotch finished the cal and threw the cell onto the passenger seat, he sped up as he was determined to get there before Emily did something that she may regret later.

* * *

Carefully Emily placed the key card into the door, waiting patiently as the lock flashed green and allowed her to enter the room. She had unashamedly used her credentials and family name to get into the room, Emily knew that it wouldn't be long until her presence was detected but for the time being she wandered over to the window. She stared hard out at the New York skyline, waiting patiently as he mind whirred constantly as it tried to make sense of what Emily was going to say to her mother. Suddenly Emily heard the door handle begin to move, her heart started to pound hard and fast as she turned around and faced her mother who stood silently at the door. Emily took a deep breath as she watched her mother shut the door before she walked over to the table in the room, dropping her bag beside the chair and placing the files on top of the wooden table.

"Emily."

The Ambassador nodded her head, her voice faltering slightly as she looked at her daughter who was walking purposefully towards her.

"You promised to stay away."

The words came out firmly, a strong authoritative tone in her voice.

"I'm sorry. It was a meeting that I couldn't get out of, and I did try. I was hoping to slip in and out without any trouble."

Elizabeth bowed her head as she spoke, unable to look her daughter in the eye.

Emily closed her eyes and sucked in her bottom lip before she regained the composure she needed to look at her mother once again.

"Well **YOUR** granddaughter wanted to know where **YOU** and her **FATHER** were at all times so that neither of you could **HURT** her again. She found out that you had returned but she didn't want to see you."

Emily swallowed hard as she felt the lump in her throat grow larger, she glanced at her mother and shook her head as she watched a tear escape from the older woman's eye.

"I needed to see you, to put all of this to rest. After all that you did to hurt me and **MY** daughter, I still don't understand it and I probably never will. I don't consider you to be my mother, to me **BOTH **of my parents are **DEAD**."

Emily felt her voice stutter slightly as the volume increased and she finished abruptly, the atmosphere suddenly disrupted by a loud knock at the door. Ever the political figure Elizabeth quickly wiped her tears away and walked gracefully over to the door, upon opening it she just stood aside and allowed Hotch to walk in. Immediately he headed straight over to Emily and put a reassuring arm around her waist.

"Are you ok?"

Emily could feel her body shaking slightly but she managed to nod her head.

"Good, come let's go home."

Hotch kept his arm around Emily as they walked out of the hotel room, neither of them stopping to look at the Ambassador who had sat herself at the table, her head in her hands.

* * *

He watched the scene in front of the family home with complete disdain. If only the husband knew what his supposedly dutiful wife was up to behind his back, well he would soon enough, the punishment in this case really did fit the crime. He started the engine and followed her as she drove away from the house, he knew exactly what route she would take and that she would stop and pick up a coffee before she headed to the gym, that was where he was going to strike, the old fashioned way, chloroform to her face and then into the back of the van.

* * *

He smiled as he watched her eyes open, the sheer look of panic and fear caused the adrenalin to rush around his body.

"Welcome to hell."

The grin grew wider as he lifted up her arm and showed her the tattoo he had completed whilst she had been unconscious. The smile turned to laughter as she began to struggle and tried to speak but the tape across her mouth stifled any words.

"Don't worry there will be plenty of time to speak soon, I just wonder whose name you'll be screaming, your husband's or your lover's?"

The laughter grew louder as he climbed out of the back of the van and sat in the driver's seat, starting the engine he headed for her final destination, Suffolk Virginia.


	8. Chapter 8  Lust

A/N – Sorry for the delay in updating, real life has been fairly hectic, so thank you to everyone who is still reading and for your patience.

**

* * *

Chapter 8 – Lust**

The long lonely drive passed like in a blur for Emily, the tears slowly dripped down her cheeks as she drove, she had given up hope of trying to get them to stop and as she was alone Emily let her emotions finally get the better of her. Emily blinked her eyes as the tears built up slightly, swallowing hard as she was unable to rid the large lump in her throat, it had been arduous seeing her mother and in the end she had bottled out, the childhood that she had endured meant that yet again she had been unable to vent her true feelings, that her mother still had a hold over her. Emily knew that it was time to move on, she was confident that her mother would continue to keep her distance and that maybe now was the time to enjoy a little happiness in her own life. The fact that Hotch had dropped everything, including Jack, to come and track her down, it made her emotional response even harder as she felt the tears steadily trickle down. As the journey neared the end Emily glanced up in the mirror, seeing the lights still behind her, at an even distance as they had been since they had left New York, she had wanted to head straight home but when she eventually turned her phone back on she saw a message from JJ that Natasha and Jack were with her. At that moment all Emily wanted to do was to hold her daughter and even though it would be well into the early hours by the time they reached JJ's, both her and Hotch knew that she would be up waiting.

* * *

JJ glanced up at the clock on the mantelpiece as she felt Dave squeeze her hand, she smiled at him as he nodded towards Natasha who had curled up on the chair by the window, anxiously watching out for the two vehicles to pull up and stop outside the house. Hotch had phoned them as he had started to head out of New York and the three adults in the room were waiting patiently for their arrival. As four bright headlights shone through the front window Natasha instinctively bit her bottom lip and looked towards JJ and Dave.

"Sit tight sweetie, it's been a long day let them get in first."

Dave spoke softly as he watched Natasha's tired blue eyes focus on him and nod slowly while JJ stood up and made her way towards the front door.

* * *

Hotch quickly exited his vehicle and caught up with Emily as she shivered in the cool night air, he smiled as he wrapped his arm around her waist and they walked towards the front door, both of them breathing heavily as they saw JJ appear at the newly opened door.

"Thanks JJ."

Emily moved forward and hugged her friend as Hotch kept his hand on the small of her back.

"It's ok Em, I didn't want her to be alone. Did everything go well?"

"I feel kind of better, exhausted but..."

"She's waiting for you in the room."

JJ smiled as Emily nodded and walked past her, she closed the door and turned to face Hotch who stood in front of her.

"That you JJ, do you want me to go up and get Jack?"

JJ shook her head as she rested her hand on his shoulder.

"Leave him Hotch, he is fast asleep there is no point in disturbing him, he can have breakfast with us and we'll drop him off at school."

"Are you sure?"

"Of course Hotch, really it's no problem."

"Thanks JJ, it's been a slightly exhausting day."

Hotch smiled as JJ nodded and walked towards the living room, she then heard Dave in the kitchen and headed past the room where Natasha and Emily were talking, knowing that Hotch was close behind her.

* * *

Dave stood up as he saw Emily enter the room, he smiled and winked at Natasha before he made his way out of the room, leaving mother and daughter alone. Natasha nervously got up from the chair and glanced towards the door, watching the exhausted, red-eyed figure come closer and, without saying a word, embrace her tightly.

"Are you ok?"

Natasha whispered into her mother's ear as Emily rested her head on her daughter's shoulder.

"Yes."

"Did it help?"

"Yes."

"Good, I'm happy for you mom."

Emily stayed holding on to her daughter, finding immense comfort in being back home with all of her family.

* * *

Doctor Rice crouched down in the wind chamber, glad that it was turned off as she looked at the woman's body that had been slammed hard onto the metal floor after she had been subjected to hurricane force winds naked in the chamber. There was no id on the victim yet, just that she was female, between 30-40 years old with dyed blonde hair. The damage the wind and subsequent fall had done to her face meant that it was going to be difficult for anyone to visible id the body and that dental records were also probably going to be of no use. As Doctor Rice gently rolled the body over onto the black body bag she noticed a black mark on the victim's right forearm, reaching for her torch she shone the light onto the area and frowned as she saw the circle tattoo with **II** tattooed inside it. Putting the torch away Doctor Rice stood up and looked around the spherical structure which was normally used for indoor sky diving, her mind was whirring at the unusual and cruel death as she turned and looked at the detective who had been assigned the case.

"What are your thoughts Detective?"

"I don't really know Doc, I was kind of hoping that you may be able to help."

Doctor Rice puffed out her cheeks as she cast her eyes back down to the body.

"I think that we are both going to need some help with this, I've got a friend, Doctor Reid, who works at the FBI."

"Sure doc, give him a ring, I haven't seen anything like this before."

Doctor Rice nodded her head as she crouched back down again, as soon as the body was transported back to the morgue she could contact Doctor Reid.


	9. Chapter 9  Omicron

**Chapter 9 - Omicron**

Reid was beginning to stir as the phone started to vibrate across the wooden bedside cabinet, sleepily he sat up and grabbed a hold of it.

"Doctor Reid."

"Sorry to call so early Doctor Reid, this is Doctor Rice."

"Ah yes the ME, I remember you from the conference a few weeks ago, how can I help?"

"I've got a rather unusual cast that I attended a few hours ago, I was wondering if you would be able to take a look at it?"

"Of course if you send me the details and any photos I'll look at it straight away."

"Thank you Doctor Reid, if I'm right about this then we are going to definitely need your help."

Reid finished the call and frowned, Doctor Rice had sounded worried on the phone and that caused him concern, he had told her to fax the details over to the office and now he was anxious to get dressed and find out what the case was about.

* * *

Emily stretched her arms up so that they touched the top of the headboard, slowly she peeled her eyes open and saw the daylight trying to creep in the room through a crack in the curtains. Emily brought her arms back down and laid them across the naked chest of the man lying next to her.

"Morning."

Hotch smiled as he opened his eyes and looked at Emily.

"Morning. Did you sleep well?"

"Excellently, I could get used to waking up liked this."

"Me too."

Emily snuggled in closer and closed her eyes once again, listening to Hotch's heartbeat as she relaxed for a few minutes before she sat back up and looked at the time.

"I guess we should get up, it's nearly midday."

"Can't we stay here and hide?"

Emily laughed softly, this was the side of Hotch that she loved, the side he kept hidden from almost everyone else.

"That would be nice but I'm afraid not."

Emily grinned as she pulled away and stepped out of the bed, grabbing her robe which she slipped on before walking over to the door, holding it ajar as she looked back towards Hotch.

"Breakfast in bed?"

"Definitely."

Emily nodded her head as she walked out of the bedroom, padding softly down the stairs where she saw a hastily scribbled note beside the kettle, as Emily flicked the kettle on she picked it up to read.

_Gone out for a run, food in the fridge, give me a ring when you are up._

_ Tasha _

_ xx_

Emily smiled as she put the note down, the two of them had much to talk about and she hoped that they could spend some time together that evening.

* * *

Reid walked speedily out of the elevator, pushing his sunglasses to the top of his head as he balanced the two cups of coffee while his bag bounced against his hips as he made his way towards his desk. Carefully he put his coffee down and slung his bag under his desk as his eyes caught the brown envelope that had been placed atop of his keyboard. He sat down as his long fingers tore open the envelope and pulled out the information that Doctor Rice had sent over to him. Reid sat with his legs crossed, a cup of coffee in his right hand as he concentrated on the photos sent over to him, he frowned slightly, in his time at the BAU he had not come across a case like this. His fingers then stopped on the photo of the tattoo that had been inscribed on the victim's right forearm. Snatching the photo he started to jog out of the bullpen, making his way down to Garcia's office, he knew that despite the early hour she would be in as he knocked earnestly at her door.

"Come in all who dare."

Reid smiled as he walked in and closed the door behind him.

"Ah the gorgeous Doctor Reid, what can I do for you this early morning?"

"Umm. I was wondering if you could search and see if anybody has been recently murdered with a tattoo on their right forearm, specifically those with roman numerals inside a circle?"

Garcia raised an eyebrow as she picked up her pen.

"Any area or time period to focus on here?"

"I don't know I'm afraid Garcia, I may be wrong but if you could look for me whilst I look something else up?"

"Of course Reid, I'll let you know as soon as my babies come back with anything."

Reid smiled as he kept the envelope clasped tight in his hand, he walked out of Garcia's office, he needed to get to a bookstore and fast.

* * *

He had watched from afar as the body was removed from the skydiving centre, his eyes focused on the medical examiner as she sat in her vehicle and immediately got on the phone, this was an unexpected turn of events as he looked at the small screen in front of him that displayed the details of who she was calling. He had not been planning for this involvement for a while yet but as meticulous as he was he had a plan for every eventuality and that meant that he was in for a long drive, heading up to Baltimore, there were plenty of choice for his next victim there.


	10. Chapter 10  Delta

**A/N – sorry for the delay in updating, various problems keep cropping up, hope people are still enjoying the story.**

**

* * *

Chapter 10 – Delta**

Reid had his head down, his eyes focused on the book as his fingers rapidly turned the pages while instinctively his feet headed in the direction of the bullpen.

"Reid!"

Reid carried on walking, completely oblivious to any voice.

"Reid!"

Reid finally stopped, but mainly due to the fact that he had reached the closed doors and not because of Garcia's loud command. Garcia eventually caught up as Reid lifted his head up to push the door open, firmly placing her hand upon his left shoulder.

"Spencer!"

"Oh hello Garcia, did you find anything out?"

Garcia sighed and shook her head as she followed Reid into the bullpen, perching on the edge of his desk as he sat down, the book still open in his hands and his fingers poised atop of it, pausing as he looked towards Garcia who smiled at him before she responded.

"Six days ago a male was found dead in a field outside of Fredrick, Maryland, he had no apparent signs of torture apart from a tattoo on his right forearm. He didn't live in the town but his parent's did, the ME put the cause of death as suicide. My search also revealed that there was another recent death, this one was in Richmond Virginia, he also had a tattoo on the right forearm that had been done just prior to death. That victim died pretty horrifically, he was covered in bee and wasp stings and died from anaphylactic shock."

Garcia stopped as she held out the files and watched Reid eagerly take them, she could tell from his eyes that he was processing the information and whatever she had found out it wasn't good.

"Thanks Garcia, is Hotch in?"

"No not yet but Dave got in a little while ago."

"Great."

Reid didn't even stop to breath as he grabbed a book and placed it on top of the files and ran up the stairs towards Dave's office, Garcia gasped slightly as she caught sight of the book.

"Dante's Inferno, this is definitely not good."

* * *

Emily sat on the chair, her legs curled up underneath her, absorbed in the book she had in front of her. Hotch had left ten minutes earlier as he knew that Emily needed to speak to Natasha alone and there was always paperwork at the office that he needed to catch up with. Emily sat there patiently, she had rung her daughter earlier but it had gone through to her voicemail so Emily knew that the frustrations of the last few days had caught up with Natasha and she was now sweating them out of her body. Without thinking Emily's head dropped and her eyes lids headed south, her mind free and her body relaxed, the tiredness caught up with her as she fell asleep with the book still open on her lap.

Natasha opened the door, her breathing deep and slow as she recovered from the exertion she had placed her body through, heading straight to the kitchen Natasha quickly refilled her bottle with cold water, kicking off her trainers in the hall as she wandered towards her mother whom she could see was asleep in the chair. Carefully Natasha lifted the opened book from her mother's lap and placed it on the floor before she smiled and decided that she would let her rest for a little longer and that it would be best to have her shower before she woke her mother from her slumber.

* * *

Reid knocked rapidly on the open door but he didn't wait for a response as he burst in and started talking to Dave who quickly sat up and listened intently to the young doctor.

"I think that there is an unsub who is subjecting his victims to circles of hell as depicted by Dante's Inferno. My friend Doctor Rice phoned me this morning concerning a victim who died in a wind tunnel with a circle tattoo on her arm with the number two in roman numerals inked inside it. I asked Garcia to see if there were any other victims and she has found two that match perfectly with the gates to hell opening and the first circle of hell."

"Where were the victims found?"

"The first in Richmond, the second in Fredrick Maryland and this morning's victim was in Suffolk Virginia."

"So he is not targeting one set area. What about victimology?"

"I haven't got that far yet, do you agree with me?"

Dave nodded his head slowly and rubbed his chin before he stood up, pushing his chair back in the process.

"Go to the conference room, I'll get the others to join us, I think Hotch is in now."

Reid nodded his head, if he was right then this was going to be a frightening unsub to try and stop.

* * *

Natasha quickly got dressed, pulling on a pair of faded jeans and a casual jumped before she tied her wet hair back in a ponytail. She wasn't surprised to see that her mom was still asleep as she walked towards her, the emotional turmoil that she had been through had well and truly caught up with her. Natasha perched on the arm of the chair as she gently shook her mom's shoulder.

"Hey mom, I'm back."

Natasha smiled as Emily reached and immediately rubbed her eyes before she turned to face her daughter.

"Oh hi sweetie, sorry I didn't mean to fall asleep."

"That's ok, I thought I'd get showered and changed before I woke you. Did you want a coffee?"

"That sounds great."

Natasha nodded as she stood up and started to walk towards the kitchen before she was stopped in her tracks by a hand on her shoulder, she turned and saw her mom standing right beside her.

"Hey we need to talk Natasha."

"I know mom, but I don't need to know what happened in New York unless you want to tell me. I understand why you went and I hope that you aren't upset that I told Aaron, I was worried about you and wanted you to have someone there to support you."

Emily smiled as she heard the anxious tone in her daughter's voice, she allowed her to finish before she reached out and brought Natasha towards her, holding her tightly.

"It was the best thing that you could have done, thank you for being so understanding, I hate having this strained relationship with my mother and I'm eternally grateful that our relationship is completely different."

"I love you mom."

"I love you too sweetie but there was something else I needed to talk to you about."

"Ok."

"Aaron."

Natasha grinned widely as she lifted her head up and looked directly into Emily's eyes.

"So you're ready to take the next step?"

"Only if you and Jack are ok with it."

"You know that I am happy for you, Aaron is good for you, he makes you happy and treats you well."

"So if we were to start looking for a bigger place to live?"

"Sounds great to me, plus I can look after Jack when you and Aaron are away."

"I hadn't thought of that!"

Emily laughed as Natasha rolled her eyes and playfully pushed her mom away but then the sound of Emily's cell ringing disrupted their conversation as Emily picked it up and looked at the display.

"Sorry Natasha its work, why don't you make the coffee whilst I get this?"

"No worries mom."

Natasha smiled as she walked away, pleased that their lives were now settling down.


	11. Chapter 11 Contrapasso Part Two

**Chapter 11 – Contrapasso Part Two**

"We need to find out more about each victim, to find out why they were targeted."

"To see how closely he is following Dante's work?"

Hotch nodded at Reid's question before he looked around the room and took a deep breath.

"Ok Garcia can you do background checks on all three victims please, Morgan, you and JJ go to Richmond, Dave and I will go to Fredrick. Reid, you know the ME in Suffolk so you and Prentiss can go down there, and Spence fill Emily in on your way down there ok?"

"Of course Hotch, is she coming in?"

"Pick her up on your way out, she's expecting you."

Reid nodded his head as he gathered up his files and stuffed them into his bag and started to walk out the conference room.

"Keep in touch guys we need to get a handle on this as soon as possible."

Hotch's words rang out loud as the team headed out to their various assignments.

* * *

Emily walked over to the kitchen, a wry smile across her face as she sat down next to her daughter and accepted the coffee that was pushed towards her.

"Your bag is in the cupboard, beneath your favourite coat."

"Thanks, I don't know quite what is going on yet, apart from Spence is picking me up in a bit and we're heading to Suffolk, Virginia."

"You know I don't want to know the gory details mom, just keep safe and say hi to Spence for me."

Emily shook her head as she saw the small glint in Natasha's eyes as she talked about Reid, she knew the two of them had spent a little time together but she was hoping for the time being they would remain just friends.

"Of course, I should be back tomorrow but I don't know when and for how long."

"It's ok mom, I've got plenty to keep me busy."

Natasha smiled as she finished her coffee, standing up she manoeuvred herself behind Emily's chair and wrapped her arms around her mom's shoulders.

"I'll see you when I see you and phone me when you can."

"Of course."

Emily turned around slightly and kissed Natasha's hand before her daughter released her grip and walked out of the kitchen and headed towards the stairs and up to her bedroom.

* * *

He drove slowly down the street, the choice was immense as he looked around but he had already pinpointed the one he wanted and as he stopped outside the 7-11 he knew that it would only be a matter of time before he turned up, in search of food and alcohol. He allowed himself the luxury of listening to the radio, not so much for the music but he wanted to know if any of his previous presents to the devil had caught the attention of the media. He wasn't courting publicity, far from it, in order to complete the circle he needed to be out of the limelight, these first few circles were the easy ones, the victims easily picked and then offered to him. As he got deeper in it was going to be harder to go unnoticed but for now he had to concentrate on gluttony.

* * *

Emily squeezed her eyes tight shut as she lifted her left hand up and pinched the skin at the bridge of her nose, allowing herself a moment before she turned her attention back to Reid.

"So each victim has been killed as Dante wrote in his book?"

"As far as we know at the moment."

"But there is no link between the victims, different locations, different gender."

Emily sighed as she looked back at Reid, who smiled apologetically at her.

"I know, what I want to know is if the victims are chosen because they fit Dante's victimology or at least the unsubs version of it."

"So you know Doctor Rice then?"

Emily raised an eyebrow as she watched Reid's cheeks flush slightly.

"Yes we met just over a year ago at a conference, we've kept in touch occasionally mainly asking each other for help with cases."

"Just friends?"

The words came out a little firmer than Emily had intended, her natural instinct was to protect Natasha, especially after the hurt she had suffered in the last six months.

"Of course Emily, I, I, she's an acquaintance that's all. Oh look here we go."

Reid breathed a sigh of relief as he signalled and pulled into the hospital, he knew why Emily had asked him the question and he would never do anything to hurt Natasha but for the time being they needed to concentrate on this case before they were drawn further down the spiral of circles.

* * *

He wasn't disappointed, the wait had been relatively short, only 32 minutes before he entered the shop, he decided to wait until his target came out, with his arms laden with brown paper bags, there was no point in making a situation more difficult than it needed to be. It took less than a minute to subdue him and bundle him into the back of the station wagon, this was going to take some time, this circle of hell, gluttony, even given the victims state of health, would take a few days at least. Another good reason to move from city to city, state to state, to avoid detection and allow him continue on, deeper and deeper, closer and closer to the centre.

* * *

Hotch sat in the SUV, waiting as Dave shut the door and started the engine.

"So all three victims?"

"This is going to be hard Aaron, we are starting way behind on this one, and he has probably already moved onto his next victim."

"I know Dave we need to regroup and think this through, I'm a bit rusty on my knowledge of Dante's Inferno."

"Well I'm sure that Reid will be able to give us all a run down, maybe there is some link in the geographical profile that we are missing."

Hotch nodded as he emailed Garcia asking her to collate all the information the team had gathered ready for when they reconnected back at the BAU.


	12. Chapter 12 Gluttony

**A/N – Sorry that this has been on hold but I am back and determined to finish it, there is a lot of research to do for this story but it will be updated as regularly as possible, a big thank you to everyone who is reading this.**

**Chapter 12 – Gluttony**

Garcia placed the last of the Chinese takeaway boxes on the table, Rossi had phoned her 30 minutes earlier and she knew that it wouldn't be long until the team all reconvened and the least she could do was to ensure that there was food and drink ready for them. Satisfied with her work Garcia walked out of the room and back towards her lair but as she reached the elevators they quickly opened and Hotch walked out.

"Oh Sir, it's good to see you back, I've put food in the conference room for you all."

"Thanks Garcia."

The two of them moved to one side as Morgan, JJ and Rossi appeared, heading straight up to the conference room.

"Tasha rang me earlier, she picked Jack up from Jessica's and the two of them are at Emily's, she said they were going to have pizza and watch a movie. Tasha was hoping that if you got a chance then you and Emily could maybe get home to see the two of them."

Garcia raised an eyebrow at her boss as a broad smile crept across her face.

"Thank you Penelope."

Hotch shook his head but then he felt a familiar hand touch firmly on his back.

"Everything ok?"

"Everything's Peachey my sweet Emily!"

Garcia winked and smiled at Emily before she walked away heading up to the conference room where the rest of the team were now tucking into the food she had organised. Emily moved around so that she was facing Hotch a quizzical look on her face but the smile just grew wider on his face as his dimples appeared.

"Apparently your daughter rang Garcia earlier, she picked up Jack and the two of them are having a pizza and movie night at yours and we are invited if we can get away from here!"

"Well I think that it's great that Jack is that comfortable with Tasha now, it certainly validates our decision to make the move. Hopefully once this case is over we'll be able to start looking at some places the four of us could move into."

"That sounds like a wonderful idea!"

"Ah hmmmm."

Dave smiled as he walked over, he could see Hotch leaning in closer and he delighted in spoiling the moment.

"If you two could tear yourselves away from each other for a moment then maybe you could join the rest of us for some food before it goes cold, oh and Reid is about to give a lecture on Dante."

Emily felt her cheeks begin to redden slightly as she instinctively pulled away from Hotch a little but as she saw the smile fail to leave Hotch's face she shook her head and followed the two men up to join the rest of the team.

* * *

Finally the life had drained from the contrapasso as slowly he walked towards the chair that had been adapted so his contrapasso wouldn't move, especially seeing as he was strapped in by his ankles, wrists and neck. The food and alcohol had been fed to him continuously, mixed in with a combination of the contrapasso's urine and faeces. It had taken three days but eventually he had succumbed, choking on his own vomit. The tattoo had been administered on the second day and because he had been strapped down he had to admit that it was his best work so far. As he left the small ornament by the contrapasso's feet he took a few photos and made several notes, stashing the notebook and camera into his messenger bag before he walked out of the house, leaving the door unlocked and tying up the dog outside so that its barking would no doubt alert the neighbours in the next few hours, leaving him enough time to find a new mode of transport and get out of Baltimore.

* * *

Hotch waited until they had all finished eating, he could tell that Reid was eager to impart his knowledge but he thought that it would be best if they had digested their food first.

"Right then, I think that we can say that the three victims are linked, Reid?"

"Yes the unsub has chosen his victims specifically to match the circles of hell created by Dante and then tortured and killed them in the same way. The tattoos are a different aspect but it may be his way of ensuring that his victims are linked, he has obviously taken his time researching his victims and places where he kills and disposes them."

"Yes but at the moment he is picking his victims from all over the North East, there is no specific geographical location."

Morgan puffed out his cheeks in frustration as he spoke and concentrated his attention on Hotch.

"That is the major problem, if we assume that he is recreating Dante's circles of hell then we could look at possible victims but at the moment we have no idea of where he is going to strike next. Reid, tomorrow I want you to look at the geographical profile, I know that it is a large area but let's see if there is anything there. Garcia I want to know if there are any more deaths with tattoos, I think that the next level is gluttony so use that in your parameters. Right then I think that we should all head home, there is nothing more we can do tonight."

Hotch watched as everyone started to clear away the remnants of their takeaway dinner, he had to admit that this was going to be a difficult case to crack and in all likelihood a long one.

* * *

Emily quietly shut the door as Hotch waited for her in the dimly lit apartment, it was nearly midnight as the two of them entered Emily's apartment and Hotch quickly pointed to the sofa where Tasha was curled up, her head on a cushion.

"You go and check on Jack, he'll be in Tasha's room."

Emily whispered as she walked over to a box near the window, opening it before she retrieved two large blankets which she carefully placed over her sleeping daughter.

"Hey thanks mom."

"Hello sweetie, sorry I was hoping not to wake you."

Emily smiled as she perched on the edge of the sofa and stroked the hair away from Tasha's eyes.

"Yeah well you know that I never sleep that deeply now."

Emily nodded her head as she heard Hotch coming back down the stairs and watched as he sat on the coffee table and smiled at Tasha.

"Well he's fast asleep, thanks for looking after him Tasha."

"It wasn't a problem and it was nice to have the company."

"Are you sure that you're ok on the sofa?"

Emily continued to stroke her daughter's hair as Tasha yawned.

"I'll be fine, maybe it will encourage you two to look for a bigger place!"

Tasha grinned as Emily shook her head.

"Ok ok, goodnight sweetie, I love you."

"Love you too mom."

Emily bent over and kissed her daughter on the cheek as she and Hotch stood up.

"Night Aaron."

"Night Tasha."

Tasha pulled the blankets further up her body and closed her eyes. Emily walked quickly up the stairs as she and Aaron headed into her bedroom, this was certainly something that she could get used to, a strong family unit, it definitely felt really good.


	13. Chapter 13 Pi

**A/N - this story is a sequel and there are mentions of what happened to Tasha in the previous story, if you want to know what is going on then please read Tempe Secrets! Thanks to everyone who is reading, reviewing and alerting, enjoy.**

**Chapter 13 – Pi**

Jack stretched his arms out wide as he slowly opened his eyes, it took him a few seconds to realise where he was but then a smile crept across his face and he quickly got out of the bed and headed down the stairs, ignoring the other closed bedroom door.

"Morning Tasha, your bed is really comfy!"

Jack ran over and climbed onto the sofa, forcing a sleeping Tasha awake as she quickly out her arm around Jack and stopped him from rolling off the sofa.

"Woah there Jack careful! I'm glad that you slept well."

"Is dad and Emily here?"

"Are dad and Emily here...yes they are and probably still sleeping."

Tasha smiled as Jack wriggled under the blankets with her."

"Well we were sleeping, morning Jack."

"Dad!"

Jack suddenly leapt from the sofa, pulling the blankets off with him as he ran over and hugged Hotch who smiled and picked the young boy up.

"Is it always like this in the morning?"

"I'm afraid so Tasha!"

Tasha shook her head and smiled as she stood up and stretched out, it wasn't too bad sleeping on the sofa but it wasn't as comfortable as a bed.

"Coffee?"

Definitely, thank you."

Tasha nodded in response as she walked over and started to measure the coffee out, knowing that neither she nor her mother functioned well before their first caffeine fix of the day.

* * *

Emily smiled at her daughter as she came back down dressed ready to go out for a run, Hotch had just left to take Jack to school and she was due at the office shortly but she wanted to spend a few minutes with her daughter before she left, there had been something playing on her mind since they had had their brief conversation the previous evening.

"Can you spare me a few minutes?"

"Sure, what's up?"

Tasha grabbed a bottle of water from the fridge and took a sip as she sat down on the stool next to Emily.

"I just wanted to check that everything was ok with you."

"Yeah, my classes are due to start soon, that will be a bit strange but I think that I'm ready for it."

"How are you sleeping?"

"Mom."

Tasha opened her mouth to protest some more but the look on her mom's face told her that it wouldn't be a good move.

"Ok I'm not sleeping very well at the moment but it's no big deal."

"Well it is to me, is that why you agreed to look after Jack, so you wouldn't be alone?"

Tasha nodded her head as she took a long gulp of water.

"Oh sweetie why didn't you tell me?"

"Because it's crazy, it was ages ago I shouldn't let it dictate my life."

"Tasha you went through a horrible ordeal, it's going to take time, you know that don't you?"

"I guess so, I just don't like admitting it, it makes me feel weak."

"You are not weak, you are incredibly strong, now we'll make an appointment for you to talk to someone ok?"

"I suppose that you won't take no for an answer?"

Emily grinned as she shook her head before she reached across and hugged her daughter tightly.

"Are you going to be home tonight?"

"I don't know sweetie, we've picked up a weird case but I'll try my hardest, maybe it should just be the two of us tonight?"

"That would be nice."

"Good now off you go for your run and I'll speak to you later."

Emily ruffled Tasha's hair and kissed the top of her daughter's head as Natasha stood up and grabbed her keys, hanging them around her neck before she gave a quick a wave and went off for her run.

* * *

Emily walked towards her desk and smiled at Morgan but as she saw him shake his head she let out an exaggerated sigh.

"I suppose it would have been too much to ask for, what's happened?"

"A body was found in Baltimore in the early hours, Hotch is just getting the details, you've got just enough time to grab a coffee before he calls for us."

Morgan lifted up his mug as he finished talking, a small smile on his face as Emily put her bags down.

"Ok I get the hint Derek!"

Emily quickly took the empty mug from Morgan before she walked over and made two mugs of strong coffee.

* * *

Hotch waited as Garcia was the last to take her seat.

"Ok Baltimore PD were called last night about a dog that was continuously barking outside a house, a patrol car stopped to check it out and found the house unlocked, upon entering they found this."

"Jesus!"

"Oh no!"

The mumbled response was not unsurprising as Hotch brought up the photos of the naked obese man strapped to a chair.

"Cerberus."

"Yes Reid, he left a small statue of the three headed dog by the body, there is also the tattoo."

"Have they identified the victim yet?"

Rossi kept his eyes focused on the photo, analysing every small detail.

"Yes, Paul Roberts 35 years old, lived in Baltimore all his life. Rossi you and Prentiss go to Baltimore and find out all you can on the victim, his routine and life, how he may have met the unsub. Reid you're concentrating on the geographical profile."

Emily watched as Hotch left the room, her heart pounding fast as she stayed sitting in the room.

"Is everything ok?"

Emily jumped as the soft voice spoke, turning she saw JJ sitting next to her and the room was empty apart from the two of them.

"Oh yeah, just the trip, I could have done with staying here for a couple of days."

JJ frowned as she leant forward.

"What's going on? Hotch?"

"No, no everything's good there, really good. Tasha is having some trouble sleeping at the moment, she only admitted the fact to me this morning, I was going to take her to speak to a counsellor again."

"Nightmares?"

"I think so, we didn't get long to speak, I know it's been months since the attack but..."

"Come on Emily we both know that it is not that easy to forget. How about Tasha stays with me tonight? Henry goes to bed early and then I could talk to her?"

"Would you Jen? That would be a relief, I know that she trusts you and she'll probably open up to you more anyway."

Emily bowed her head slightly as JJ reached across and patted her friend on the shoulder.

"Of course Em, as long as you look after Dave for me!"

Emily laughed and finally a smile crossed her face, her concerns about her daughter could be put to one side for the moment and she could fully concentrate on the frightening case in hand.

* * *

A smile crept across his face as he drove over the Brooklyn bridge, his open notebook lay on the passenger seat and as the traffic crept along he focused on the two photos of his next targets. In reality there was no other place he could have headed other than New York for these contrapasso's, it was littered with potential targets but over time he had narrowed it down to two and had found the perfect empty warehouse to carry out the punishment. He was looking forward to this level, it had taken a lot of planning and he was intrigued to see if it would work, crushed by a weight, what a truly magnificent way to die.


	14. Chapter 14 Greed

**Chapter 14 – Greed**

The camera was on a tripod, he had allowed himself extra space for this one, safe in the knowledge that they wouldn't be disturbed, he wanted plenty of photos for this one and it allowed him to sit and take notes. The two women were sobbing, loudly, standing opposite each other as they were strapped around the waist to a pole that had been cemented into the floor. He was pleased that his measurements had been correct, that if the two women stretched out their arms they couldn't touch each other, that there was just enough room for the punishment. A broad smile crossed his face as he stood up and walked over to the wall where a rope was currently tied up, slowly he lifted it off the hook and started to let it trickle through his hands, the screams grew louder as the large metal object bore down on the two women, eventually coming to a rest between them.

"Welcome to Greed the fourth circle of hell!"

His laughter filled the open space and he went and took his seat once again, picking up his notebook and pen as the two women tried to push the enormous weight off their bodies.

* * *

Emily walked out of the house and immediately raised her head up to the sky, opening her mouth wide as she tried to inhale as much fresh air as possible.

"You ok?"

"Yeah just trying to get rid of the stench."

"It certainly was not a pretty sight."

Rossi stood in front of Emily as he too started to close his eyes and breathe heavily. Baltimore PD had left the body in situ for them to examine but the two of them weren't entirely grateful for the fact. The buckets of urine and faeces as well as the vomit on the floor was a sight that was going to stay with the both of them for a while yet.

"He really has done his research hasn't he?"

Emily opened her eyes as she spoke, slowly bringing her head down to look at Dave who nodded in reply.

"Well I guess we should go and check out his apartment now."

"Hopefully it will be in a better state than this one."

"I don't know Dave, he was an obese alcoholic, housekeeping probably wasn't high on his list of priorities."

Dave shook his head, he and Emily had definitely picked the grimmest of tasks, all he could hope for was a glint of evidence that would give them a clue as to the unsub's identity.

* * *

Tasha opened the car door and took a deep breath, it wasn't as if she hadn't been to JJ's house before, it was the fact that her mom had probably confided in her best friend and that meant that she wasn't going to get away with not talking but on the upside at least she wasn't going to spend the night alone and for that fact alone Tasha smiled as she saw JJ standing at the door waiting for her.

"Come on in I've just put Henry to bed so it's just the two of us."

JJ put her hand on Tasha's shoulder as she shut and locked the front door, the two of them walking through to the living room where Tasha put a small bag on the floor.

"Thanks for letting me stay Jen."

"It's not a problem, I've made up the spare room for you, though you might get woken up by Henry in the morning."

"I'm kind of getting used to that with Jack!"

"That's good then. Have you eaten?"

JJ smiled as she stood up, she could see the tiredness on Tasha's face and knew that if she had been spending time alone then she probably wasn't eating properly either.

"Not since lunch."

"Well it's a good job, I made a rather large lasagne you can help me demolish it!"

"Thanks Jen."

Tasha followed JJ into the kitchen and sat at the round table which already had two places set.

"So did you make the appointment today?"

JJ placed the two plates on the table and sat down, she knew that Tasha wouldn't appreciate the small talk so decided to get straight to the point.

"Yes, I'm seeing someone tomorrow afternoon. I'm guessing mom filled you in?"

"That's good, and she only told me a little Em said that she hadn't had a chance to speak to you in detail."

"I don't know what brought it on. For months I was fine, everything was really good but then all of a sudden I can't sleep. I mean I go to sleep but I wake up, wide awake, nightmares that scare me so much I can't get back to sleep."

Tasha kept her head bowed and pushed the lasagne around the plate but then she felt JJ's hand on top of hers.

"I can't have the bedroom door shut, I tried once but found myself sitting in bed waiting for someone to try and get in. When mom's away I spend the nights downstairs on the sofa, lights on, tv on and then I can get a few hours sleep without even realising."

Tasha swallowed hard as she felt a tear escape from the corner of her eye.

"Oh sweetie it's ok."

JJ moved closer and put her arm around Tasha and relaxed as the young woman put her head on JJ's shoulder.

"It's going to take time Tasha, talk to the counsellor but you know that you can always talk to me or your mom if you need to."

"Thanks Jen."

"Anytime sweetie."

JJ smiled as Tasha moved away and started to eat some of the lasagne, pleased that the young woman had opened up to her and that it might lead to a better night's sleep for them all.

* * *

He raised an eyebrow in surprise, surprised that they had had the strength to last as long as they did, he had assumed, wrongly, that the privileged women would have lasted about six hours at the most and it was to their credit that they had lasted thirteen and fifteen hours respectively. He stood up and retrieved the camera from the tripod, moving closer to the bodies to get a few close up shots, he had all the notes he needed but he wanted some photos of the tattoos. As he packed up his messenger bag he looked back at the bodies, crushed by the huge weight lodged between them, he wondered when they would be discovered, he knew that the next contrapasso wouldn't be long and he wanted them found in order, with that in mind he set off the burglar alarm before he bid a hasty retreat.

* * *

Hotch pinned the photos to the board in the conference room, glad that Garcia was safely working away on her office, to say that they were graphic would be an understatement but they showed the lengths that the unsub was going to and he was certainly being creative in his methods of recreating hell. The map on the wall now had four pins in it but he knew that there was no link to the locations, this unsub was too clever for that, he was more interested in the victim, making sure that they met his needs, the location to Hotch that seemed to be lower down on the priority list. Hotch sighed as he picked up a copy of Dante's Inferno and sat down, he hoped that Rossi and Prentiss could find something to help them otherwise he knew that there was going to be a lot more bodies before they managed to stop him, if they managed to stop him.


	15. Chapter 15 Epsilon

**Chapter 15 – Epsilon**

Hotch stood in his office, the door was shut but the blinds were open, he allowed his mind to wander off the conversation he was having as he watched JJ push open the door to the bullpen. A frown crossed his face as he saw how tired and downbeat the normally cheerful agent was but then he remembered where he was and what he was in the middle of.

"Sorry Dave what was that?"

"I said that there was nothing in the apartment that could help us, he didn't go out that much, stayed in drinking and eating most of the time, the unsub probably picked him out at the local Wal-Mart."

"Ok well there's no point in the two of you staying there any longer, the unsub will have moved on to his next target already."

"We'll see you soon then."

Hotch lowered his cell and tapped on the window and as he saw two dull blue eyes look up and waved for her to join him, wandering around he placed the cell on his desk before he sat on the sofa.

"Morning JJ, is everything ok?"

JJ closed the door and smiled as she next to Hotch on the sofa.

"Fine thanks."

"I went to go and check on Tasha this morning but there was no sign of her in the apartment."

JJ raised an eyebrow but Hotch raised his hands defensively.

"Emily gave me a key a while ago."

"Yeah I know I was just teasing you! Don't worry Tasha stayed the night at mine."

"Oh so that's why you look so tired, the two of you spent the night gossiping?"

A relieved smiled crossed Hotch's face but then he heard the sigh escape from JJ's mouth and he quickly turned back to face her.

"I wish it was like that, I lay in bed all night listening to Tasha tossing and turning and then her screams while she was having nightmares."

"I didn't..."

"It's ok Emily didn't get a chance to tell you, she only found out herself yesterday morning, Tasha didn't want to let anybody know."

Hotch nodded as he watched JJ fail to stifle a yawn.

"Thanks, if there is anything I can do to help then please let me know."

"Well Tasha is seeing a counsellor later today so that should help."

"I wish that there was more that I could do, Tasha has been so good to Jack and welcoming to me."

JJ smiled at the honesty as Hotch rubbed his chin.

"I think that it's just going to take some time but with everyone's help Tasha will get there."

Hotch nodded, his mind a bit of a whirl as he allowed what JJ had told him to sink in but his train of thought was suddenly interrupted as the door opened hastily and a breathless Garcia appeared.

"Sorry Sir but we've got another one, New York."

"Shit."

Hotch quickly stood up as the expletive left his mouth, following Garcia to the conference room with JJ behind him as Morgan and Reid ran up the stairs to join them.

* * *

"What have we got Garcia?"

Hotch sat down as Garcia scrambled her fingers to the keyboard, instantly bringing up a photo that had Morgan and JJ gasping in horror,

"A New York City patrol car stopped at an abandoned warehouse in Hell's Kitchen where they had reports of a burglar alarm going off, inside they found the bodies of two women, their bodies crushed against some sort of large object."

Garcia spoke rapidly, anxious to get the words out so she didn't have to think about the victims and the torturous death they had suffered.

"Greed, the forth circle of hell, where those who are obsessed with material worth reside. The two victims, both female, one will have hoarded her belongings and the other would have wasted them, flashed their worth around. As to the huge object Garcia, that would be the heavy stone they would have pushed against each other until the weight was too much for their bodies to bear."

"That is too much information Spencer!"

Garcia closed her eyes and brought her hands up to her mouth as JJ put her hand on her friend's shoulder.

"Ok Morgan and I will go to New York. Reid I want you to concentrate on the next three levels, try and get a profile of who the perfect victim would be for the unsub, JJ we need to keep this out of the media for as long as possible and then help Reid with possible future victims."

Hotch closed the cover on his IPad and nodded at Morgan who stood up and followed him out of the conference room.

* * *

He sat back in the seat, allowing himself a bit of comfort as he left the hustle and bustle of the city and hit the quiet peaceful countryside. The vehicle he had for this journey, a new top of the range SUV was another treat, but once again it did have its practicalities, tinted windows and a large trunk which he would need shortly. He had to stop before he reached his final destination, his contrapasso was located in Edgewood and he needed to be then taken to somewhere else, somewhere nearer to where those who were hunting him were located. A smile crossed his face as he thought about the fruitless search they would be on, his surveillance had told him that they were now looking for him, that they had found his previous contrapasso's but they were no closer to finding him, he knew that he was getting closer to his end game but there was still much work to be done. With that in mind he leant over and opened his notebook to the page on the fifth circle and examined the man's photo. Anger, the photo showed plenty of it, anger at everyone and everything, so now he would bring him peace, but only after his suffering of course.

* * *

Emily yawned widely as Dave held the door open for her and she followed him into the bullpen which was eerily quiet but the light shining in the conference room told them all they needed to know as the two of them silently walked up, Emily without even stopping at her desk to drop her bag off.

"Hey did you hear that there has been another one in New York?"

Emily shook her head as she sat down and rubbed her eyes.

"Great just what we needed, thanks Spencer."

Reid frowned but then he looked across the table and saw not only Emily's tired figure but JJ shaking her head.

"Oh sorry Emily."

"Listen Em why don't you go home, Dave Spence and I have got things covered here."

Emily opened her eyes and looked at JJ who was sitting next to Dave as he concentrated on the photos from the New York crime scene.

"No I'll be ok, just let me grab a coffee."

Emily stood up and walked over to the coffee machine but JJ quickly followed her.

"Go home Em, she needs to see you."

JJ whispered quietly as she stood next to her friend who finally nodded in agreement.

"Ok thanks."

Without another word Emily turned and picked up her bag, leaving the room as quickly and quietly as she had entered.

* * *

Emily closed and locked the door to the apartment, unsurprised that all the lights were turned on, she placed her bags in the hall before dropping her keys on the small table.

"Hey Tasha it's me, I'm back."

Emily frowned slightly at the lack of a reply and quickly she wandered into the kitchen which was spotlessly clean, a sigh left Emily's mouth as she realised that it meant that her daughter was not eating properly.

"Tasha?"

Emily called out again as she left the kitchen, she could hear the television was on low as she walked further round the apartment but again there was no sign of her daughter, the panic started to rise and her pace increased as Emily headed to Tasha's bedroom. The door was open which was what she expected but a gasp left her mouth as she saw her daughter curled up underneath the covers with only the tip of her head showing.

"Tasha, are you ok?"

Emily spoke softly as she moved nearer the bed, it was then that she saw that her daughter was in the throngs of a nightmare and she tried to gently wake her.

"Don't hurt me, please just leave me alone!"

Tasha suddenly sat bolt upright in the bed and took a hold of Emily's hands and tried to vigorously push her away.

"Tasha it's me, mom, come on open your eyes for me."

Emily managed to keep her emotions in check as she saw the fear in her daughter's eyes but then Tasha buried her head into Emily's chest and Emily quickly wrapped her arms around and held her daughter tightly.

"Its ok sweetie, I'm here now."

"Sorry mom."

"Shh Tasha."

Emily kissed the top of her daughter's head and kept a hold of her, soothing her until the sobbing finally subsided.


	16. Chapter 16 Anger

**A/N – Thanks to everyone who is reading, reviewing and alerting your comments really do make a difference to those who write! I know a few people have said about Tasha and the nightmares but this is a sequel to Tempe Secrets and in that story Tasha suffered a horrible ordeal and I couldn't have her get over it and be happy for the rest of her life, she is going to suffer flashbacks, nightmares at least this time she has Emily, Hotch, Jack and the rest of the team to help her. Anyway enough of this rambling and on with the story which is a bit unsub heavy...**

**Chapter 16 – Anger**

He knew exactly where the contrapasso would be, 15:42 precisely, sitting on the bench opposite the two gravestones, the thought of picking different contrapasso's crossed his mind early on in the process, ones that were slightly more difficult to capture but then he realised that they were perfect because they were so caught up in their own sins, and this one, this contrapasso was angry. That anger only grew in the large SUV, he had thought about restraining him more but he wanted him furious and to have him conscious and aware of the torment he was going to suffer would help to achieve that. The drive was going to take a few hours, he had spent time finding the right location, it had to be secluded and not too big, not too deep, the water that he had decided upon was crystal clear but a can of oil would easily rectify that problem. At one point he had thought about having more than one contrapasso for this circle but after a great deal of planning he decided that it wasn't worth the risk, he needed to reach the centre, the contrapasso he had selected for the final level, to meet the devil himself, was perfect and he didn't want to get caught before he had a chance to punish her, especially as it would directly impact on those who were hunting him.

"Don't worry not far now and then you can feel free, beat out all that anger you are suffering from, yours will be a glorious sacrifice to the devil!"

The muffled response was what he was looking for as he felt the SUV lurch slightly as the contrapasso flayed around in the back, desperate for an escape but for him there was only one route, only after the suffering could there be escape, escape to the depths of hell.

* * *

Emily opened her eyes as she felt movement beside her, looking up at the ceiling she quickly realised where she was and turned around to see Tasha sitting on the edge of the bed.

"Sorry I didn't mean to wake you."

Tasha smiled as she turned and watched her mom stretch out her long limbs, the two of them had fallen asleep on her bed and it had meant that Tasha had had the best night's sleep for a long while.

"That's ok I'd better get up, I left the others working late last night."

Tasha bowed her head, immediately feeling guilty for her mother coming home to her last night.

"Oh sweetie it's not your fault, please don't feel bad."

"Is it a bad case?"

"Seems that way, Aaron and Morgan are in New York at the moment."

Tasha went to speak but the sound of Emily's cell interrupted them and she passed the offending item from her bedside cabinet to her mom.

"Speaking of Aaron!"

A smile quickly appeared as Tasha looked at the display and stood up.

"I'll go and get showered so you two can talk!"

Emily shook her head as Tasha walked out of the room but then her mind got back to the call as she answered it.

"Morning."

"Hi I hope I didn't wake you?"

"No you're ok on that one, Reid told me about the new victim, how is it?"

"Probably about the same as Baltimore."

Hotch paused for a moment, the grim nature of the bodies was something that none of them wanted to get used to.

"How is Tasha?"

Emily waited for a second, hearing the sound of the shower she felt safe to answer.

"She was having a nightmare when I got home last night, I ended up sleeping in her bed with her, I know that it's not ideal but at least we both got some sleep."

"That's good, if you need any time..."

"No its ok, just if we go away again it would be good if Tasha wasn't alone for the time being."

"Ok I'll bear that in mind. How are you with all of this?"

"Not too bad, I feel frustrated that I can't do more to help, that Tasha kept quiet for so long."

"Emily it's not your fault, none of this nor is it Tasha's. Listen Morgan and I are flying back soon and then the four of us can spend the evening together, I think we could all do with that."

"That would be lovely, your place?"

"Yes I've got food that is edible!"

"Very funny Aaron, I'll see you soon then."

"Of course."

Emily smiled as she put the cell back down and stretched her arms once again, a family evening would be the best way to forget about the case and put a smile on her daughter's face.

* * *

He drove down the dirt track, checking that he was not being followed but the area was quiet and secluded so he knew that it wasn't likely. The sun was beginning to set and he hoped that he would accomplish his task before darkness enveloped him but he knew that that was one thing that he had no control over, that depended on the contrapasso and he had a feeling that this one was strong and it would take some time. He stopped the SUV as near as he could get to the small pond, picking up the can of oil from the passenger seat as he locked the vehicle, the last thing he wanted was to go running after his contrapasso because of a careless oversight. Standing by the edge of the pond he took a big intake of fresh air, unpolluted air, into his lungs before he slowly poured the oil on top of the water, standing there silently for a few minutes, fascinated by the way that it sat on top of the water and the patterns it created. But it wasn't long before he went back to the SUV and opened the trunk, the small weights that he had attached to the contrapasso's ankles would do the job nicely, allowing him to fight against the water but ultimately it would be a fight that he couldn't win. He picked the contrapasso up, which was not an easy task, ignoring the screams and punches as he silently tipped the body into the water, pushing him further away from the edge before he returned once again to the SUV. Retrieving his messenger bag he also picked up the 3ft long piece of metal tubing that was stored by the passenger seat, knowing it may well be useful to push the contrapasso back to the middle if he got too near the edge. He stood on the edge of the pond, the metal pole in his left hand while he had the camera in his right, taking plenty of photos as the contrapasso struggled in the water, he had judged the weight perfectly, the contrapasso could bring his head up above the water sporadically but he was unable to swim to the edge especially as he began to tire. He took the decision to lay the pole on the ground, anxious to get the best shots as the end neared.

It all ended within moments but he stood for a little while longer at the edge of the pond, taking copious notes before he packed his belongings away once again, stowing the pole in the trunk and his bag on the passenger seat, only then did he walk back towards the pond, this time with a box of matches in his hand. The can of oil still lay on the edge of the pond and he needed the body to be found. Taking one match in his right hand he tipped the rest of the box around the can before he lit the remaining match, dropping it and the box to the floor. The fire would annihilate any evidence he may have left and would also allow him time to disappear once again, moving onto the sixth circle and his next contrapasso.


	17. Chapter 17 Rho

**Chapter 17 – Rho**

Reid was sat at the conference table once again, it was littered with photos, books and maps, chaos to the naked eye but for him it was the perfect working environment. He had his head bowed as he concentrated on the piece of paper in front of him, unaware as slowly the rest of the team congregated in the room.

"How are you getting on Reid?"

"Oh hi Hotch, hang on."

Reid sat up, slightly flustered and tried to gather his notes as the rest of the team sat down with Hotch purposefully positioning himself next to Emily.

"Right the next circle the unsub will move onto is anger. His victim will probably show a lot of anger, not at himself but to those around him, he may have lost a close relative in an avoidable accident for example. The unsub needs water for this circle, I've ruled out swimming pools as they are too public and he won't want to run the risk of getting caught. Unfortunately that means that we are still left with a lot of areas seeing as the unsub is operating in such a large geographical base. What I have deduced is that he is moving around after each kill, maybe deliberately to avoid detection, combining that with the opportunity to find the perfect location for his next victim. I've got Garcia to alert me to any missing person's cases that come in so we can rule them out."

"Yes but seeing as they have to be missing for at least 24 hours he'll have already moved on before we can get close!"

Morgan threw his hands down onto the table in frustration causing Reid to jump up slightly from his seat.

"We need to get any evidence from the crime scenes and see if he had left any clues, revisit the first few victims there may have been evidence that we missed."

Hotch lifted his head as he spoke, looking seriously around his team as they nodded in agreement quickly dividing the workload between them before they left the conference room.

"Uh Hotch can I have a word?"

Reid stood up, waiting until the room had emptied, he had left something out of his analysis but at the moment he didn't want to share it with the others but Hotch, as the unit chief, needed to be aware of it.

"What is it Reid?"

Hotch had stayed sitting as he looked through Reid's notes but as he listened to the young doctor sit down again he brought his head up and gave his colleague his full attention.

"I've been given some thought to the later levels."

Reid paused for a moment, nobody wanted to admit that they weren't going to catch this unsub but in reality unless they caught a lucky break it wasn't going to be any time soon.

"Go on Reid."

"Well Sir, his pool of potential, perfect victims, well it will grow smaller as we get further into the circles of hell, even given the large geographical area."

Hotch nodded as he reached across and picked up a copy of Dante's Inferno, flicking through to the later pages.

"Do you think that you could come up with a workable list of potential victims?"

"Yes."

"Ok then work on that, but we keep it quiet we don't want this getting out, especially to Strauss."

Reid nodded as Hotch picked up his files and left the room, leaving Reid to work on the hard task ahead of him.

* * *

Emily smiled as she climbed into the passenger seat of Hotch's SUV, he had sent the team all home to get a good night's rest and seeing as Emily was going to be spending the night at his house it seemed daft to take two vehicles.

"This is nice."

"The car, the company?"

Hotch grinned as he started the engine and looked at Emily leaning back into the seat.

"Both! Are you ok to stop at mine to pick Tasha up?"

"Of course, how is she?"

"Good thanks, she's looking forward to seeing Jack and kept dropping hints this morning about moving, I know that she is 21 but it's been just the two of us all her life and she finds the prospect of a bigger family exciting."

"I'm glad she approves!"

Hotch grinned and wiggled his eyebrows, causing Emily to laugh out loud and gently push Hotch on the arm, this was what they all needed, to go home, relax, without thoughts of the case interrupting them.

* * *

Hotch looked into the mirror and concentrated on Tasha for a moment while they were stuck at the traffic lights, she was looking out of the window but he could see the tiredness around her eyes and she was much quieter than usual, he hoped that Jack would be able to lift her spirits as he always did when Hotch returned from a particularly gruesome case. He could sense Emily's eyes on him as he pulled away from the lights but it was a calming feeling, reassurance that everything was going to be ok as he concentrated on the road ahead and the journey to his small suburban home he shared with Jack.

* * *

It had been a difficult decision, choosing this contrapasso, nowadays there were so many of them, the non-believers, soon the word would need to be spread so that the media would frenzy on his spree. May be then some of them would change their minds, see him for what he truly was, a devoted servant for evil, that evil existed and lived among them, he knew that the next one would need to be in a public place and therefore timed to perfection so that he would not get caught. The nation's capital, that would get them noticing, nobody would be able to miss the show that he was about to put on.

* * *

Emily was curled up on the sofa, her eyes watching Tasha and Jack who were sprawled out on the floor playing Mousetrap, but then she felt an all too familiar figure come to a rest beside her and a smile crossed her face as she tucked her feet underneath his legs.

"Comfy?"

Hotch smiled as Emily wiggled her toes in acknowledgement before he leant in and wrapped his arm around her, enjoying the warmth of her body.

"They look happy."

Emily turned away from her daughter and Jack to look at Hotch as she nodded her head.

"You know I've been thinking..."

"I thought that we agreed that we were going to forget about work tonight."

"Who said that I was going to talk about work?"

Emily shook her head as Hotch grinned and she waved her hand for him to continue.

"Instead of looking for somewhere else to live, why don't you and Tasha move in here?"

Emily raised her eyebrows as she thought about what Hotch had just said, her full concentration was now focused on the man she finally could admit to herself as loving.

"Wow, I eh, but your spare room it's not very big."

"Hmm yes, great for Tasha to sleep in tonight but..."

"You've got a solution?"

Emily smiled as she saw Hotch's dimples appear and waited for him to continue.

"The space above the garages, it would be perfect for a small self contained apartment. I figured that although Tasha is more than happy to live with us she is getting older and might be happy to have her own space."

Emily let out a small laugh as she shifted her position and moved in closer to Hotch.

"So you have been giving this a lot of thought."

"Well it was a long flight to New York, I had to talk to Morgan about something."

"Oh yes our very own home improvement guy!"

"He wants to help Emily you know it makes sense!"

Their laughter filled the room as Emily shook her head before she took a deep breath.

"Well I think it is a great idea, of course we'll have to talk to Tasha as well, how does Jack feel about it?"

"He was the one that suggested you move in here, but he was worried Sergio."

"Oh I'm sure that he can adapt to the move, he's a pretty chilled out cat. Thank you Aaron I can't believe how much thought you have given this and to both Tasha and myself."

Emily reached across and kissed Hotch gently on the lips but as he pulled her closer the passion increased between them. Finally as she tenderly moved away Emily moved her eyes back towards the floor.

"Where have the kids gone?"

"Oh I think that they've gone to bed."

"Good."

Emily grinned as she leant in towards Hotch once again, her heart beating fast as their lips joined once again.


	18. Chapter 18 Zeta

Chapter 18 – Zeta

Opening his eyes his first instinct was to look at the illuminated alarm clock beside him, 6:14am, he closed his eyes again briefly but then he heard a faint sound which must have been what had woken him in the first place. Hotch glanced across at Emily but was she was still sleeping peacefully and he did not want to disturb her so carefully he slipped out of the bed and headed downstairs.

"Is everything ok Tasha?"

Hotch yawned as he watched Emily's daughter pour herself a large glass of water.

"Sorry I didn't mean to wake you."

"That's ok I thought that it was Jack, I hear any movement in this house during the night."

Hotch smiled as he saw Tasha begin to relax slightly.

"DO you want some company?"

Tasha frowned but then she realised that she was standing in the Hotchner kitchen dressed in her running gear.

"Um yeah but what about Jack?"

"Oh he'll amuse himself with Emily, he takes great delight in waking her up in the morning!"

"Yes mom never has been a morning person."

"Ok well give me a minute and we can head out."

"Thanks Aaron."

Hotch grinned as he left the kitchen, stealthily moving around the house so he could put his running clothes on without disturbing Emily or Jack.

* * *

Hotch puffed out his cheeks and checked the watch on his wrist, quickly calculating that there were now into the last mile of their six mile route, he turned and looked at Tasha who like himself, was still going strong.

"So how did you sleep last night?"

"Better."

Hotch nodded as he picked up the pace a little.

"Are you angry?"

"Sorry?"

Tasha brought her knees up slightly as she caught Hotch up.

"Come on Tasha, are you angry?"

"Yes, but at myself."

Hotch nodded and watched in admiration as the young woman sprinted off, he that this was what you needed, to sweat the emotions out. It took him five minutes to catch up with Tasha and he joined her on his front lawn, using the tree to stretch out the run from their muscles.

"I'm angry that I'm still letting them ruin my life, that that one night is still dictating my life."

"And have you told anyone this? Your mom, JJ, yourself?"

Tasha shook her head as she took a deep breath and changed the leg she was stretching.

"Well maybe by admitting it, saying it out loud."

Hotch raised an eyebrow as he looked as Tasha brought her head up and their eyes met, a smile finally on her face.

"Yeah well maybe you're right, thanks for this morning Aaron."

"Well you certainly pushed me, it was a good workout!"

Hotch smiled as he stood up straight and stretched out his back before he headed towards the front door quickly followed by Tasha as the two of them entered the quiet house.

* * *

He sat in the blue pickup truck and watched the two figures talking on the front lawn, it had been unintentional that the next contrapasso lived so close and for him to have company, well that was an added bonus. It was definitely her, it had been just over four months since he had seen her, then she had been unconscious with tubes going in and out of her body, but the hair and face were unmistakable. Now this was an unplanned turn of events, not that he was complaining, the fact that there were now two agents living at the address just made things a lot more interesting, carefully he took a few photos as the two figures entered the house. He waited a couple of minutes before he stowed the camera away and started the engine, it was only about half a mile to the contrapasso's house and he needed to get there before he had the audacity to leave for work.

* * *

Emily was sat in the kitchen with Jack, a stack of pancakes in the middle of the table and the two of them shared a look before a large grin appeared on Emily's face.

"You are going down Jack! Ready, set, go!"

The two of them reached across and grabbed a pancake before eagerly devouring it, only once the plate was empty and their mouths clear could they grab another one.

"Uh Aaron?"

Tasha turned back as she stood in the doorway and looked at Hotch who had just stowed his keys away.

"Yes."

"Maybe it wasn't such a good idea to come out with me, I'm afraid my mother is corrupting your son!"

Tasha tried to stifle her laughter but failed as Hotch joined her and she could see that his mouth was agape at the sight in front of him.

"Is this was I think it is?"

Hotch frowned as he watched Jacked shove a whole pancake into his mouth but then he saw Emily do the exact same thing, both had syrup dripping down their chins.

"Yep but I don't know who is winning!"

At that moment Jack threw his fork down onto the table and pushed his arms up in delight, opening his mouth wide to prove to Emily that there was no food left in there.

"You lose Emily, lose, lose, lose!"

Emily was chewing hard, shaking her head furiously while at the same time trying not to laugh and spit the food out everywhere.

"Dare I ask?"

"Hey dad I beat Emily in an eating contest, can't wait to tell Uncle Derek!"

Emily reached up and wiped her mouth and grinned.

"Oh you two are back, did you have a good run?"

"Nice one mom try and change the subject I don't think that it is going to work though! I'm going up to shower Aaron, good luck!"

Tasha laughed as she walked out of the room, joined by an ecstatic Jack who bounded ahead of her to launch himself on the sofa and flick the TV on.

"Don't worry I'll clean up."

Hotch had suppressed his laughter but suddenly he found that he was unable to do so, especially as Emily sat at the table with syrup still dripping down her chin.

"I think you need to clean yourself up first."

"So did you have a good run?"

"Yes we did actually and a good chat."

"Oh."

"I'll let her talk to you, anyway we'd better get ready, I've got to drop Jack off at school before we go to work, what about Tasha?"

"Drop her off at work and then she can take my car."

Hotch nodded as he leant across and wiped the syrup off Emily's face before he kissed her softly on the lips.


	19. Chapter 19 Heresy

**A/N – thanks to everyone who takes the time out to read, review and alert this story it really does mean a lot to me that people are enjoying the story and it is not an exercise in futility!**

**Chapter 19 – Heresy**

Garcia sat in her office, the door shut tight, the light from her babies illuminating the room as her fingers gently tapped away at the keyboard when suddenly her train of thought as a bright red window popped up in front of her.

"Oh no."

Her quiet voice was one of despair as she noted the details, a body with a tattoo, a V in a circle, in a small pond that had been covered with oil. Within seconds she was on her feet, her heels clicking sharply on the hard surface as she headed up to Hotch's office.

"Sir?"

"Another one?"

Garcia nodded her head as she passed the iPad over to him.

"Ok I'll gather the others."

"I'll set the conference room up."

"Thanks Garcia."

Hotch passed the iPad back before he got up from behind the desk and followed Garcia out of his office, he looked down at the bullpen and saw that Reid, Morgan, Emily and JJ were already looking up at him as he signalled for them to join him in the conference room before he walked the short distance to Dave's office.

* * *

"Right then my crime fighting angels. A body was discovered in Prince William Forest Park this morning, drowned in a small pond that was covered in oil, there is also a tattoo on the victim."

Garcia paused as she brought up the few photos she had managed to acquire in the short time.

"That's not far from here."

"8.6 miles."

Morgan rolled his eyes, wishing he hadn't bothered in making the remark but unfortunately the words had escaped before he had had a chance to think.

"He's getting braver, maybe he knows that we are looking for him and is antagonising us by dropping a victim right in our laps."

Hotch looked at Dave and slowly nodded his head, agreeing with his older colleague's assessment.

"Ok we'll all go, Garcia as soon as we get an ID..."

"I'm on it and I'm already checking missing person's reports for people who recently lost a loved one but nothing yet."

Garcia finished her sentence with a whisper as the room emptied and she was left alone.

"Come on then Penelope back to your glorious abode."

* * *

He had left the blue pickup truck exactly 200 yards away and now he was sat, actually crouched would be a better word for it, in the foot well of the passenger seat, waiting patiently to launch his attack once the contrapasso entered and according to his wristwatch, that would be in 235 seconds time. He took a deep breath and started to count methodically silently in his head, his fingers caressing the blade of the knife, he didn't want to use it, it was there to frighten and subdue, he had counted to 200 and stopped immediately, opening his eyes and he tried to slow his breathing down even more in anticipation.

He waited until he felt the vehicle move away, counting once again, one thousand, two thousand, three thousand.

"Hello Peter."

He had managed to sit down on the passenger seat as the vehicle suddenly swerved, using his strength he held the knife out and aimed it down towards Peter's groin.

"Take it slowly Peter, park it over by the diner."

"Who are you?"

"That doesn't matter, just do as I say or I'll kill you here."

There was a tone to his voice, although he had spoken quietly, a menace that left Peter well aware that it would be best to obey the man with the knife. As soon as the vehicle had stopped he reached over with his left hand and injected Peter hard in his thigh.

"What the..."

He didn't bother to reply, he was getting tired of talking to these contrapasso's, tired of having to explain to them why they had to die, what they had done to earn his wrath. Surely they would know, the fact that they were in denial only proved to him that he had made no mistake in choosing his contrapasso's. He moved Peter to the passenger seat, the dose he had given him would knock him out for around ninety minutes, plenty of time to get to his destination without having to break the speed limit or attract any unnecessary interest.

* * *

The two SUVs stopped at the large yellow tape that had been pulled across the dirt track, the sun was shining and it was a warm day but the smell of burnt wood filled the air as they stepped out and followed Hotch as he stopped and spoke to the officer standing guard by the tape but soon they were silently walking their way down to the pond. Reid was the first to step down, crouching down as he looked at the body which still lay underneath the oily water.

"Interesting."

Reid stood up and turned around and looked at the rest of the team, he knew that they did not share his enthusiasm but he couldn't help himself.

"Have we got an ID yet?"

Rossi shook his head as Reid stood up before Hotch rejoined the group after speaking to the park rangers.

"The ME will be here shortly to remove the body, one of the rangers spotted the smoke when they were doing their early morning patrols, and they quickly doused the flames before they noticed the body. He's certainly very intelligent, there'll be no evidence now, the fire and then the clear up will have seen to that. There's also no CCTV anywhere around here so we've got no help on that front either."

Hotch sighed as he looked around the group, apart from Reid they had the same despondent look on their faces.

"As soon as we can identify the victim the more we can learn about the unsub, how he may identify and locate his victims. He may not be leaving any physical evidence but we have got to stop chasing the victims and think for a while."

Rossi looked at Hotch as he finished talking and saw his friend nod his head slowly.

"Right there is nothing more we can gain here, let's get back and start looking again at the first few victims, he's getting bolder and closer, he won't be able to stay undetected for much longer."

Hotch turned and walked away from the pond, an uncomfortable feeling in the pit of his stomach, he knew that there were going to be more victims but that they also needed time to stop and think in order to have any chance of catching him.

* * *

He had stopped the vehicle out of sight, which was difficult in itself when you were this close to the nations capital, but he needed the contrapasso to be conscious again and also for darkness to fall and the gates to the cemetery to be locked. He didn't any grieving people to interrupt what was going to be a glorious night. He had spent a great deal of time in finding the right tomb to destroy, a heretic burnt in a flaming tomb, the fuel that he had chosen was going to play a large part in announcing his arrival to the media, he wanted the flames to be seen for miles, to be visible for those annoying media helicopters. As for now, he waited, occupying himself with the dutiful task of tattooing the semi-conscious contrapasso, on his chest just to the right of his heart, he had betrayed god and now he would pay his price to the devil.

* * *

Hotch sat in his office, his mind fully concentrated on the file in front of him, he had lost track of time but he knew that he couldn't leave until he had finished the work in front of him. Emily had come in to see him earlier and informed him that Tasha had driven over to pick Jack up from school would look after him at the house until the two of them returned from work which was at least one small thing for him not to worry about at the moment.

"Aaron they have identified the victim, you need to see this."

Dave had suddenly burst into the room and looked at the information, that the victims blue pickup truck had been found half a mile from his house, instantly Hotch reached for his phone as he looked at Dave.

"Tasha and Jack are alone."

"A patrol car is already on its way, it's probably just a coincidence Aaron."

Hotch nodded as he waited impatiently for Tasha to answer her phone, he wouldn't feel better until Tasha and Jack were safely back with him and Emily.


	20. Chapter 20 Sigma

**Chapter 20 – Sigma**

The sound of on-rushing footsteps was expected as Dave stood in Hotch's office, his right hand took a hold of his keys and he quickly brought them out of his jeans pocket as Emily ran into the room, anguish all over her face.

"Aaron!"

"It's ok Emily, I'm sure it's nothing."

Hotch smiled as Emily nodded her head, neither of them really believing what he had just said.

"Come on I'll drive you."

Rossi jangled his keys and started to walk, not waiting for any reply and to his relief there was none as he heard footsteps eagerly follow him down the steps.

* * *

Tasha moved Jack protectively behind her as she put the chain across the door, opening it slightly to reveal two uniform police officers, instinctively she asked to see their identification before she let them enter, all the time she refused to let go of Jack's hand. Tasha didn't pretend to know what was going on but she knew what Jack had been through when he had lost his mom and her overriding thought was that no matter what she would protect him. A smile crossed Tasha's face as she led Jack through to the living room, the two officers joining them as she curled up on the sofa, bringing Jack up close to her, he still had a hold of the book they had been reading earlier together so gently she reached over and opened it up, the story of Danny Champion of the World began once again.

* * *

Dave stopped the car in the drive behind the patrol car, he didn't have a chance to speak before Emily had jumped out and started to run towards the front door, her right hand instinctively on her side near her weapon.

"I'll drive around to where the pickup was found, Morgan and Reid will be here shortly."

"Thanks Dave, let me know what you find out."

"Of course, now you'd better get in before Emily loses it completely with those poor officers."

Dave managed a light laugh as he watched Emily push the young man aside at the front door and ran inside.

Emily didn't breathe as she pocketed her FBI credentials until she reached the living room and her eyes found Jack and Tasha curled up together on the sofa, immediately the commotion caused them to leave reading the book and two sets of eyes stared hard at Emily.

"Mom!"

"Emily!"

Tasha quickly lifted Jack off her lap and stood him up on the floor only for him to tear off towards Emily as Tasha followed him, the two of them wrapping their arms tightly around the tall brunette. Emily swallowed hard as she tried to keep the tears at bay, with her left hand she pulled Tasha's head into her shoulder while her right ruffled Jack's hair as his head nestled against her stomach. Emily felt Jack suddenly jump away from her, quickly she turned her head but then a warm smile crossed her face.

"Dad!"

Hotch managed to respond quickly enough as Jack jumped up and into his strong arms.

"Mom?"

"I'll explain later ok?"

Tasha nodded her head as she pulled away from Emily's embrace and walked through to the kitchen leaving Emily to wander over to where Hotch and Jack were standing.

* * *

JJ carried the sleeping boy up the path, the area was lit up by blue and red flashing lights but once Henry was asleep there was little chance of waking him, the door opened for her as she stepped up.

"Do you want me to take him?"

"Thanks Dave, he's getting heavy now."

"No worries, Jack's asleep in his room and Emily put the spare bed in there for Henry."

JJ nodded as she walked into the house and watched Dave carefully carry Henry up the stairs. A frown crossed JJ's face as she entered the living room and saw the rest of the BAU team sitting around, cups of coffee strewn all over the place.

"Hey JJ is Henry ok?"

"Yeah Dave's putting him up in Jack's room, thanks for sorting everything Em."

"It's the least I could do in the circumstances."

JJ smiled as she sat down next to Garcia.

"Where's Tasha?"

"In the kitchen."

JJ nodded at Garcia's answer as Dave rejoined the group before Hotch clapped his hands.

"Ok the blue pickup truck of our last victim, Sean O'Connell, was found half a mile away from my house, Tasha and I can both remember seeing the vehicle this morning after we returned from our run. CSI's are now going over the truck but we don't expect to find anything."

"Sir!"

Garcia's sudden squeal caused JJ to jump but there was no containing her quirky friend.

"There is a man who lives just near where we found the pickup truck, he is an ex-Baptist minister, he has also written several articles against the church and the growing creationist movement."

"A Heretic, the next circle of hell."

Reid stood up as he spoke and looked at Hotch but he was still concentrated on Garcia.

"The address has been sent to your phones."

"Ok Garcia and Prentiss stay here, we'll leave a patrol unit outside with you."

Emily nodded as the rest of the team filed out, then her eyes looked towards her daughter who was sat in the kitchen pretending to watch the television and a heavy sigh left her body.

* * *

The tape had been applied to the contrapasso's mouth before he put the black plastic bag over his head and lead him by foot into the cemetery. The planning as ever was to perfection and he needed no torch, instead counting his steps silently as he made his way towards the stone tomb. He had decided that afternoon that he wasn't going to say anymore to the contrapasso, from now on his actions would speak for him. Five minutes later he stopped and sat the contrapasso on the grass, before tying his ankles and wrists together so that he couldn't run off while he removed the top of the tomb. It was a heavy and cumbersome task but the cemetery was deserted and darkness helped him to remain anonymous, then he placed his contrapasso in the tomb before he started to replace the heavy stone once again, removing the plastic bag from his head at the last possible moment. The muffled sounds were barely audible as he now spent time preparing the tomb for the fire, the explosion, the media, he had his escape route planned as he set the taper alight and moved swiftly away.

* * *

Garcia beamed as she walked into the kitchen and sat next to Tasha.

"Hey what are you watching?"

"Huh?"

Tasha moved her head and looked at a still grinning Garcia and shook her head slightly to wake herself up.

"Oh hey Penelope, I eh, not sure really."

"Sounds good, mind if I join you?"

Tasha shrugged her shoulders as Garcia shuffled a little closer and took a hold of the remote, flicking though the channels until her fingers suddenly became paralysed and a gasp left her mouth.

"Mom!"

Tasha screamed loudly and suddenly as she felt Garcia take a hold of her hand and squeeze it tightly as their eyes fixated on the television screen.

"What is it? Is everything ok?"

Emily ran into the room, the silence scaring her but then she saw what Garcia and Tasha were watching unfold on the television, immediately she reached across and turned the volume up whilst at the same time reaching for her cell.

"And as we can see from the footage from the helicopter there is a major fire at the congressional cemetery on the outskirts of Washington D.C."

Garcia felt a shudder travel down her spine as she listened to the reporter on the television, she could hear Emily behind them talking to Hotch and she knew that before long they would be at the scene, Garcia squeezed Tasha's hand tighter as she whispered quietly under her breath.

"Hell is empty and all the devils are here."


	21. Chapter 21 Eta

**Chapter 21 – Eta**

The team were exhausted as they entered the bullpen, the fire had finally been extinguished at the cemetery and as they had expected a body, not the one named on the tombstone, was inside. Knowing there was little more to be gained from staying at the scene they headed back, reaching the bullpen just after 9am, yet already there was a foreboding presence standing in Hotch's office.

"I didn't realise the devil rose this early in the morning."

Garcia muttered under her breath as she walked towards the break area, desperate for a caffeine fix.

"Poor choice of words kitten."

Rossi shook his head but then he heard Hotch sigh heavily next to him.

"It was to be expected Aaron, there's going to be increased pressure now and you know that now Strauss is back she's got a point to prove."

* * *

Erin Strauss watched the team trudge in, not that she was surprised she had been kept abreast of the Dante killer but now the bar had been raised and the Director, TV reporters and journalists were demanding answers and she herself needed some too. As Hotch walked up the stairs Erin took a deep breath, he knew how vulnerable she was and if she pushed him or the team the wrong way she could well be on her way out of the FBI for good.

"Erin..."

"It's ok Aaron I'm not here to berate you."

Hotch nodded as he walked around and sat down at his desk, raising his eyebrows as he saw the cup of coffee sitting on the desk waiting for him, he eyed Strauss carefully as she sat down in the chair opposite him and took a sip of her own coffee.

"Are Jack and Tasha ok?"

"Yes a little confused, well Jack anyway Tasha was watching the news when it happened."

"Where are they now?"

"Jack's at school, I think Tasha has gone back home."

Erin frowned slightly and looked hard at Hotch.

"You think that they're in danger?"

"Do you?"

"No not at the moment, I think that the next victim living close to me was a coincidence."

Erin nodded her head knowing that Hotch would not put Jack in any danger, not after what had happened with Foyet.

"I've got the Director asking me questions and the media hounding my secretary."

"You'll have my report as soon as I've written it."

"Thank you and any extra support you may need just let me know, we will find room in the budget for this."

"Thank you ma'am."

Erin nodded as she stood up and walked swiftly out the room, the team didn't need her around to confuse matters.

* * *

Dave frowned as he walked towards the yawning brunette, it was not place to tell her that no matter how much makeup she put on there was no disguising the dark shadows that were haunting her face.

"Oh sorry Dave I didn't realise that you were there."

Emily smiled as Dave sat down on Morgan's chair and wheeled it closer.

"Here."

Dave handed over a coffee as they glanced over and watched Strauss walk stoically out of the bullpen.

"Well she wasn't there long, it can't have been that bad."

"Oh I don't know Dave, the venom can be delivered short and sharply!"

Dave smiled and shook his head before he took in a deep breath.

"What are you going to do about Jack and Tasha? I know that it is unlikely that the unsub will target them but I'm worried enough about Henry that I didn't want to leave him this morning."

Emily nodded her head as she took a sip of coffee, checking around her that there was nobody nearby.

"I think that we need to be cautious, I know that Aaron feels the same even though officially he won't say so. The best thing is for them to be with one of us at all times apart from when they're at school."

"My thoughts exactly, between us we should be able to manage that, but what about Tasha?"

Emily sighed as she thought about her daughter.

"She knows what is going on and that she needs to be careful."

"Good well I'd better get on, we'll sort the rest of the details out later."

Emily nodded her head as she checked her watch, Tasha was due to be meeting a counsellor shortly but there was no way that she could meet up with her until later in the day, instead she quickly fired off a text message.

_Hope it went ok, go to the apartment & lock up, see u soon x_

Reid was so concentrated on the files in front of him that the conversation between Emily and Dave completely

* * *

passed him by. He had skipped the next circle, even though it contained three sublevels Reid knew that the unsub was probably already onto them, he needed to look further ahead than that, the only worrying factor was that he was running out of potential victims. He had settled on looking at Fraud, the eighth circle of hell, and had narrowed his search down to either D.C or New York. The fact that the last kill had attracted so much publicity had helped Reid, the unsub would continue to court publicity and that meant that the victims would need to be as prominent as possible. Fraud of the Church, Reid sighed as he saw the list of potential victims, he thought that by picking this one he would have a good chance of narrowing the list down but then one name leapt out at him and sent him running out of the bullpen towards Garcia's office.

* * *

Morgan walked up to the conference room, his arms full with takeaway bags as he quickly placed them in the middle of the round table and stood back.

"Ok lunch is served!"

Morgan laughed as Garcia patted the empty chair next to her which Morgan duly sat in and looked on in amazement as Emily and JJ quickly helped themselves to the food. Reid hadn't bothered with any food, he was anxiously tapping his pen on the table, waiting impatiently to share his thoughts with the team.

"Right I know that you all saw Section Chief Strauss here earlier, it wasn't a big surprise, she knows the pressure that we are all under but needs some answers to give not only the media but the Director too. Any extra resources are at our disposal, I think that we need to use those for forensic tests as there is a large backlog at the moment."

Hotch took a breath as he finished and put his pen on top of his file before he reached across and grabbed a spring roll before JJ's muffled voice filled the room as she struggled to finish her mouthful of food as she spoke.

"The media are going crazy, this was a national monument and they got some spectular footage of the fire from the helicopters, then us swarming over the scene has got them asking a lot of questions. My phone has been ringing non-stop even though I changed numbers since I came back somehow they still know how to get a hold of me."

JJ shook her head as she reached across and grabbed the container of chow mein before she felt Emily's hand on her shoulder, knowing that it was a small gesture of comfort that she needed to cope with the stress she was currently feeling.

"You know I'm getting slightly pissed that we keep playing catch up with this bastard. He won't stay still, he keeps piling the bodies up, am I the only one who thinks that we might not catch this one?"

Morgan threw his chopsticks down onto the table, he hadn't intended the force to be as strong as it was but they flew across and landed near Hotch who quietly put his hand on top of the rattling objects, he knew, he felt his friend's frustration.

"I know how you feel Morgan, this is a tough case and the unsub has definitely upped his game but I asked Reid to start looking at possible future victims, but not from the next circle, we need to identify them further along and then maybe we can catch him."

"Uh yeah on that I think that I may have found one."

Reid stuttered slightly as he spoke, still tapping his pen as all eyes suddenly fell on him.


	22. Chapter 22 Violence

Chapter 22 – Violence

He had brought a lorry for this one, plain white, well it was meant to be but the dirt around the wheels and windows were an added bonus. He had spent time yesterday sectioning the back into three parts but also had allowed a portion of the day to watch the news and admire his handiwork, that had been a pleasant surprise, they had no idea of who he was and the carnage he still had to yield onto the nation. The day was going to be long, he had a lot of miles to cover, starting in New York before heading south to D.C. before turning around and heading north once again. They thought they knew all about him, could profile him from how he killed and the victims he had chosen, well tomorrow when they found what he had left them they would have to revise their opinions completely.

* * *

The room was silent, twelve eyes staring hard straight at him, Reid swallowed hard trying to move what little saliva there was around his mouth so that when he spoke he wouldn't falter.

"Father Mike Phillips, Priest at St Joseph's in Philadelphia. He worked as an investment banker in New York before the economic downturn and used his millions to basically buy the church, relying on incentives such as food and clothing to entice the congregation in. Father Phillips has asked to take a service at the Cathedral and it seems that he is rapidly progressing within the church."

Reid had carried on tapping his pen on the table as he watched the seriousness on everyone's face but then Garcia's tapping on her keyboard broke the monotony of the silence as she quickly filled the large screen in the room with several images.

"This is Father Phillips's DMV photo and that is the Church, he lives in a small apartment right next to the Church. His financials records are still quite impressive even given the amount he has ploughed into the church, which up until yesterday amounted to $1.5 million."

"Phew that makes Emily's trust fund pale into insignificance!"

JJ smirked but then Emily's hand cuffed her gently on the shoulder and she feigned mock hurt before Hotch cleared his throat.

"Ok he certainly seems like a good candidate, Morgan and I will go and visit him and I think that we should set up some surveillance in the area."

"Uh I would like to go and see someone who might have some insight on all of this."

Dave cleared his throat and looked at Emily, who raised her eyebrows quizzically at him.

"My friend Father Jimmy may be able to help us."

Hotch nodded as he remembered the white haired priest.

"Ok you and Prentiss pay him a visit, Spencer I need you to concentrate on anymore possible victims and JJ Strauss may need your assistance dealing with the media."

* * *

It was a short journey to begin with, picking up the first contrapasso in Central Park before loading him into the lorry as he made the long four and half hour drive south to D.C, he decided that he needed to make a stop along the way, to break up the day, have a coffee break but also to perform the first tattoo. He wanted to keep his high standards and that meant taking time to do the tattoo plus it would add to the contrapasso's fear which would be an added bonus. Having the three victims in the back of the lorry was a gamble but after the last showing he needed to keep up with the high tempo, prove that he was the real deal, shock the watching public into fearing him, because everyone was potentially a contrapasso.

Seven hours later and he had arrived at his destination, pulling sharply off the road and killed the engine. His body was tired but the adrenalin was keeping him going, there was still one tattoo to complete before he tried the tricky task of sending the contrapasso's to their different levels of hell at the same time. He knew that it wouldn't be long until the bodies were found, again fire was going to be involved and the closeness to the highway would give the game away quickly, but he had a plan, as always, this time to ditch the lorry and use the motorbike he had stowed in the bushes to beat a hasty retreat. Stretching out his arms he reached across and picked up his messenger bag from the passenger seat, within in were not only his notes, photos but also his tattoo gun and ink, checking in his mirrors that he hadn't picked up any unwarranted attention he climbed down and prepared himself for the screams that the contrapasso was about to unleash.

* * *

Morgan and Hotch walked back into the bullpen, it was late but they had safely ushered Father Phillips into protective custody and had left agents from the Philadelphia field office to do surveillance in case the unsub turned up looking for him. Straight away they headed up to the conference room where they could see Reid, JJ and Garcia hard at work.

"Did it go ok?"

Hotch nodded as he sat down and watched as Reid quickly carried on with his research.

"Jack and Henry are in your office, we've made it nice and comfy for them and they are treating it like one big adventure."

JJ smiled as she saw Hotch nod his head but then the sound of all five cell phones rang simultaneously and immediately broke the mood.

* * *

He knew that it would be impossible to recreate perfectly the three rings, especially seeing as he was going to perform all three at the same time. The Outer Ring, immersed in a river of blood and fire, for the first contrapasso he had picked up in New York, well a deep pit filled with the contrapasso's own blood and then set alight should sort that one out. The Middle Ring, transformed into a thorny bush, this was the one he was looking forward to, the second contrapasso that he had collected from Georgetown, the one who wanted to die, who hurt herself, the cage in the lorry that she was currently encased in had been specifically made for the task, all he had to do was to manoeuvre it off the lorry and flick the switch and then watch and listen. The Inner Ring, residing in a desert of flaming sand with fiery flakes raining from the sky, he knew that the fiery flakes were a little bit beyond him but a pit of flaming sand, that well that was nice and easy. He reached and grabbed a can of cola, quickly downing its contents as he readied himself for the next thirty minutes and the physical nature of the task ahead of him.

* * *

Hotch drove fast as the manoeuvred the SUV along the highway, they had left Garcia and Reid behind to get on with research and also to keep an eye on Jack and Henry, the fact that a passing motorist had alerted the police meant that the media were already there and once again they were chasing the unsub. The sound of the helicopters were unmistakable as Hotch had to slow down to weave his way through the stationary traffic as he pulled off the road and made his way towards the flashing lights and yellow tape that were unmistakable in the darkness.

"JJ?"

"Don't worry Hotch I'll find out what they know."

JJ tipped her head towards the journalists as they filmed them getting out of the vehicle.

"Thanks JJ."

Hotch didn't even turn to look back at JJ as he and Morgan headed over to where the bright white lights were shining while the fireman dampened down the scene.

JJ puffed put her cheeks as she walked towards the SUV, she opened the back door and gestured for the man to get in as she watched Hotch walk towards her.

"He says he's got something for us?"

"Well he's a journalist Hotch he's going to want something in return."

Hotch nodded his head as he got in the driver's seat and turned around to face the tanned, smiling journalist.

"Come on then Steve, what have you got?"

JJ shut the door as she spoke, she knew the guy well and that he wouldn't piss her around with false information.

"I was the first one here, actually here before the police, I was travelling on the Interstate and saw the flames so I stopped. I got speaking to one of the motorists and he gave me this."

Steve paused as he reached into his pocket and retrieved his cell before he passed it over to Hotch, a video playing.

"Cost me twenty bucks."

"I guess you want more than that in return."

JJ gave a wry smile as she watched the journalist nod his head while Hotch concentrated on the footage.

"This shows a dirt bike leaving the scene just after the fires have started."

"Yeah I figure it might be the guy you're looking for."

Hotch nodded as he kept a hold of the phone quickly transferring the video file to his own cell.

"JJ will give you a detailed brief of what we know so far but you need to wait 24 hours until you run with it ok?"

JJ raised her eyebrows at Hotch's comment but then she knew that the footage must have been good and might finally be able to give them the break they so craved.


	23. Chapter 23 Tau

**Chapter 23 Tau – **

The door opened and the white haired man quickly smiled as he saw who was calling on him in the late hour.

"So it must be bad this time Davey, you've brought back up!"

Dave quickly walked in and embraced his old friend as he heard Emily shut the door behind them.

"Yeah well after last time I thought it would be wise, I'm sure that you remember Emily Prentiss."

Emily smiled as the Priest nodded at her.

"So how can I help you this time?"

"We've caught a bad one Jimmy, what do you know about Dante's Inferno?"

Jimmy puffed out his cheeks as he led the way towards his kitchen, putting the kettle on before he turned and gestured for the two agents to sit down.

"We've got an unsub who is killing people all along the East Coast, picking them specifically so that their sins matched the circle of hell he was on and then tortured and killed them."

"So you think the devil is back Davey?"

Jimmy turned and smiled at his friend and placed three mugs of tea onto the table.

"Yeah well not quite Jimmy."

Emily grinned as she listened to the banter between the two men, it was like they were twelve again and arguing over who had burped the loudest.

"So what circle is he onto now?"

"Seven, violence."

Emily's voice was quiet, she felt slightly like an interloper but then the two men turned to look at her as she continued.

"It is made up of three rings, the Outer, Middle and Inner."

"So you have a lot of bodies already, after violence there is only Fraud and Treachery left before he reaches the centre."

"Eight at the moment. He is tattooing them so we can be sure that they are all connected."

Emily stopped quickly as she felt her cell vibrating in her pocket.

"Sorry it's my daughter I'd better take it."

Dave nodded as Emily stood up and left the room.

"A daughter, I thought..."

Dave smiled as Jimmy reached up and scratched his head, memories returning from when he had last met Emily Prentiss.

"She's 21 years old, let's just say the Priest in Rome did a nasty number on my friend."

Jimmy nodded as he watched Dave look down at his mug.

"Come on then Davey, you didn't come all this way to talk about Dante, what's really on your mind? Hang on you're here about Bolgia 3 aren't you?"

Dave brought his head up and slowly nodded at his friend.

"Simony, paying for position in Church, what you want a list of possible victims?"

The room fell silent as the two old friends looked at each other, the soft sound of Emily's voice in the hallway just about audible.

* * *

"Mom?"

"Hey sweetie, how did it go this morning?"

Emily leant slightly against the hall wall as she listened to her daughter sigh.

"Ok I guess, Garcia phoned and said that Jack and Henry were staying at the BAU."

"Yeah are you at home?"

"Uh huh, should I be worried?"

"Oh no, not at all, listen I don't think I'm going to be back until the early hours Garcia is at the office if you want to."

"She won't mind?"

"No never, I'm sorry I can't be there with you."

Emily bowed her head as she listened to her daughter swallow hard, she knew that she was fighting tears.

"Ok."

Tasha cut off the call and Emily pocketed the cell, she wished that she could drop everything and go to her daughter but knew that there were more pressing matters that she needed to deal with.

* * *

Emily walked back into the kitchen and looked at the two men and raised her eyebrows at the silence between the two of them.

"So what did I miss?"

"Oh we're just thinking things through aren't we Jimmy."

"Have you told him about Father Phillips?"

Emily sat down and looked at Dave but the fact that he refused to look her in the eye told him everything he needed to know.

"Father Phillips, Davey what am I missing here?"

Dave sighed as he felt scolded by one of the nuns back at school, he took a deep breath as he prepared to fill his friend in on their worries.

* * *

Tasha stepped out of the elevator and walked towards the doors to the bullpen but as her hand rested on the glass she hesitated for a moment and closed her eyes, it had been a rough day, the meeting with the counsellor had stirred up a lot of bad memories and she really wanted to see and be held by her mom but she knew that it wasn't going to be possible.

"Natasha?"

The voice was not entirely familiar and slowly Tasha opened her eyes and turned around, instantly she was able to put a name to the voice.

"Section Chief Strauss...ma'am."

There was an uneasiness to Tasha's voice as she was unsure of how to address her mom's boss, she had only meant the woman once before but she knew that relations between the two were much better.

"Please Natasha, its Erin, are you ok?"

"Yeah, phew, yeah mom told me to come here tonight."

Erin nodded her head slowly as she watched Tasha move slightly away from the door.

"Yes I heard that Jack and Henry are asleep in Aaron's office, I'm sure that we can find somewhere for you to sleep."

"There's no rush, I'm not really that tired."

Tasha bowed her head as she fiddled with the bag slung over her shoulder but Erin had picked up on the shakiness of the young woman's hands.

"Have you eaten?"

Tasha kept her head low, she was shorter than the older woman and just shook her head slowly.

"Ok come on why don't we grab something and head to my office?"

"Thanks."

Erin smiled as she gently placed her hand on the small of Tasha's back and they walked up the corridor, stopping briefly in the outer office as she asked her assistant to order in some pizza for them.

"So Natasha you're ok after what happened the other night?"

Erin smiled as she sat down on the sofa in her office and gestured for Tasha to do likewise.

"I guess so, eh everyone kind of calls me Tasha now."

Tasha smiled as she put her bag on the floor, she knew that the woman she was sat with had helped her mom deal with her dad and grandmother, and for that she was grateful.

"How are you sleeping?"

Erin bent forward slightly and looked carefully at Tasha's face but quickly moved away as Tasha shut her blue eyes tightly.

"Jesus does everyone know, did mom send out a memo, watch out my daughter's having nightmares please tread carefully?"

Tasha's voice was full of emotion as she spoke, the venom not aimed at Strauss but she caught the full blast of it as Tasha stood up.

"Tasha no, you've got it wrong, please sit down, I can just see that you're tired, my oldest daughter has the same look in her eyes like you when she is exhausted."

Erin reached out and placed her hand on Tasha's arm, her voice calm and controlled as she felt Tasha's body sink back onto the sofa before she buried her head into her knees and let the pent up emotion escape from her body.

"It's ok Tasha, you're safe here."

Erin reached across and placed her hand on Tasha's head, stroking the hair softly as she waited patiently for Tasha to compose herself.

"Sorry."

"It's ok Tasha."

"I, pfft, I went and saw a counsellor this morning, I have been getting nightmares from..."

Erin nodded her head so Tasha knew that she understood what she was talking about.

"...it just stirred up things a bit."

"Of course, you don't have to explain yourself. Look I've got to complete a few files why don't you sleep on the sofa in here and then you won't be alone?"

Erin smiled as Tasha reached up and wiped her eyes.

"Thanks that would be great."

* * *

JJ sat in the SUV alone, she had finished talking to the journalist and had no great desire to wander into the field and see the three dead bodies, and she had seen enough death in the last few days. Resting her head against the seat she allowed herself a moment to close her eyes but then almost immediately her cell interrupted whatever peace she had found.

"Agent Jareau."

"Agent Jareau this is Ambassador Elizabeth Prentiss, I was wondering if I could have a moment of your time."


	24. Chapter 24 Theta

**A/N – A bit of advance notice, updates might not be that regular for the next couple of weeks, what with Easter holidays, my parent's visiting and...well onto my twisted story, no mention of the unsub but don't worry he is still there are leaving bodies across the East Coast! I wanted to say a big thank you to everyone who leaves comments on this story, I abandoned it once and although I'm not going to do that again I am definitely seeing this one though, your comments, the thoughtful, insightful, short, long, hell what I'm trying to say is that it makes the writing come easier! Anyway let's get down to business...**

**Chapter 24 – Theta **

"So you don't mind if I put a warning word out?"

"Of course not Jimmy, the media is all over this as it is, if any of you see anything suspicious then please contact me straight away."

Father Jimmy nodded as Dave warmly embraced his friend.

"And maybe next time when you come to visit me it will be to ask me to finally make an honest man of you and that lovely woman you live with!"

"When I find a moment to breathe Jimmy!"

Jimmy laughed as he patted his friend on the shoulder.

"Take care Emily."

Emily nodded her head as she clasped the door handle and checked the locks.

"Thank you Father, make sure that you lock up well tonight."

Jimmy smiled as he waved the agents goodbye, but he heeded the warning and made sure that his townhouse was secure before he headed up the stairs.

Emily yawned as she sat in the SUV glad that she was not driving, she could feel Dave's eyes on her as he pulled away from his friend's house.

"Just come out and say it Rossi and quit staring at me!"

"Any news from the others?"

"They're heading back to Quantico, apparently JJ has got some footage which may be the unsub leaving the scene so Garcia is analysing that, there are no ids on the victims yet, we'll probably have to wait until tomorrow for them."

"The kids?"

Emily paused as she concentrated on her cell phone, reading the emails that JJ had sent through to her.

"The boys are sound asleep in Hotch's office and Tasha was last seen with Strauss eating pizza in her office."

The SUV was dark but Emily could sense the smirk and raised eyebrows on Dave's face.

"It could be worse."

"Hmm I'm not sure how Dave."

Emily shook her head as she spoke but there was a gently tone to her voice, her daughter was safe and, for all her faults, Emily knew that Erin Strauss would not endanger her daughter in any way.

* * *

The pounding in her head was getting worse, even the sight of her son curled up on the sofa cuddling Jack tightly, as if he were a surrogate teddy bear, was not enough to ease the pain. Hotch had made a makeshift bed on the floor beside Henry and Jack, he had sent Morgan, Reid and Garcia home to get some much needed rest and JJ knew that he was relieved that the three of them were all heading to Garcia's apartment. The next task, after she had checked on her son, was for JJ to track Tasha down, she headed to Strauss's office but had only gotten as far as the doorway, despite the pain JJ couldn't stop the strange smile from crossing her face as she watched Tasha sleeping soundly, using the Section Chief's legs as a pillow. It was a strange sight but as she turned away, the pain shooting down her neck, she realised that Strauss was a mother, it was just a side that they never saw at work. After what had seemed like an eternity JJ headed to the relative comfort of Dave's office, laying flat on the small sofa, her legs drooping over the side, she could barely keep her eyes open as she fired off a couple of emails to Emily and Dave, not knowing who was driving she thought that it would be prudent to send the messages to the both of them, though she left out the conversation that had been the catalyst for the throbbing, aching, misery that was in her head at that moment. Just as she had closed her eyes JJ's cell beeped and she knew that she had to force her eyes open but sitting up was beyond her as the light from her cell brightened the room.

_We're on I-95, thanks for the news, will be with you in 2hrs or less, Dave's driving_

JJ smiled at the last comment, but that tiny movement was enough to send shooting pain from her temples to right over her eyes. Gently she placed the cell on the floor, knowing that she would soon waken if it vibrated on the hard floor, once the deed was done JJ closed her eyes once again but it wasn't sleep that played in her mind it was the conversation that she had had with the Ambassador.

"_Agent Jareau."_

"_Agent Jareau this is Ambassador Elizabeth Prentiss, I was wondering if I could have a moment of your time."_

"_Ma'am."_

"_Sorry to intrude Agent Jareau, I know that it is late, I hope I am not disturbing you?"_

"_No ma'am."_

_The frown on JJ's face deepened as she realised that it was early in the morning in Germany._

"_I know that my last visit home did not go quite according to plan and that for my family's sake I need to stay away and respect their wishes."_

"_But?"_

_JJ was tired and not in the mood to play games, especially ones that involved people she cared deeply about._

"_A friend of mine died recently, I really wish to travel back home and pay my respects, her daughter is my goddaughter."_

"_Oh."_

_JJ sighed heavily and used her free hand to rub her brow which was beginning to ache._

"_Agent Jareau?"_

"_I take it you'd like me to speak to Emily?"_

"_Yes please, I know that Natasha has some type of tracking device so if I move she will know, I don't want to arrive unannounced."_

"_Do you want to see them?"_

_JJ's words hung like a storm cloud over the Atlantic as she waited impatiently for the Ambassador's reply._

"_It's not about what I want Agent Jareau, my daughter and granddaughter have made it clear that they no longer wish to see me so I will respect their wishes, no matter how much pain it may cause me."_

_A sigh left JJ's lips once again, there was an edge to the Ambassador's voice, she was on the brink of tear and thousands of miles could not disguise that._

"_I'll see what I can do."_

"_Thank you Agent Jareau."_

JJ clenched her eyes tightly shut as the end of the conversation played out in her mind when suddenly she smelt an all too familiar scent.

"Everything ok cara?"

JJ kept her eyes shut as she felt Dave curl up against her on the sofa, wrapping his arms around her.

"It is now."

* * *

Emily stood in the office doorway, unwilling to turn any lights on as she could hear the familiar sounds that were of her daughter sleeping, according to Tasha she didn't snore, but after being kept awake many a night Emily knew that the faint sounds were of her daughter finally sleeping soundly.

"Do you want me to leave?"

The whispered voice was unexpected and even though Emily was standing in her office, it took her a few moments to identify who it was, Emily closed her eyes momentarily before she crept further into the office.

"No, no please don't disturb her, that's the last thing that Tasha needs."

"Ok. Emily why don't you go and get some rest, the two of you can speak in the morning."

The hushed conversation continued in the dark as Emily felt Strauss's eyes on her as she dropped her head and gazed at the floor.

"Thanks, I'll, I'll be in the office when she, ah when Tasha wakes up."

"Of course."

Emily turned and quietly left the office, satisfied that her daughter was safe but she also felt guilty that it was not her that the one who was comforting her whilst she slept. The guilt weighed heavily on her heart as Emily returned to the bullpen but it was only dark and lifeless, she knew that the comfort she herself craved lay up the stairs, which too was dark but the life within the two rooms was powerful and strong. Her hand lingered on the handle but then she took a deep breath and opened the door, using all of her skills to remain silent as she shut the door once again and flicked her boots off and placed them by the sofa. Emily stood for a moment, letting her eyes adjust to the relative darkness, the form that was now propped on the floor was unmistakable, smiling broadly Emily allowed herself to drop to her knees and crawling along the floor until she was beside the male figure that made her heart ache just that little less.

"Hey."

"Hey to you too."

Emily smiled as she felt Hotch's hands creep across her belly until they found her hands, their fingers intertwining.

"Tasha?"

"She's safe."

Their voices barely audible but their heads were touching so the whispered words were only heard by the two of them.

"The boys?"

"Sleeping."

"Hold me."

Hotch pushed himself up a little as he heard the need that was clearly evident in Emily's hushed voice.

"Of course but..."

"Please no questions Aaron, I'm too tired, let's just lay here and keep the boys safe."

Hotch nodded, he didn't know why as he knew that the action would not be visible by Emily but then he leant across and wrapped his arms around Emily before the two of them gently laid down on to the rough floor.

"Is everything ok?"

"It is now."

Emily sighed as she moved closer to Hotch, nuzzling her head against his head allowing her ears to tune into the sounds of Jack and Henry sleeping soundly, only then did her mind turn off and an uneasy sleep descended.


	25. Chapter 25 Bolgia 1 and Bolgia 2

**A/N – sorry for the slow update, been a manic Easter, husband hurt his back, son with chickenpox and my grandma died...thanks to everyone who is reading, reviewing and alerting. This chapter is dedicated to my grandma who was the person who taught me to love books, reading and libraries.**

**Chapter 25 – Bolgia 1 & Bolgia 2**

Morgan looked at Reid as the young doctor jogged past him on the stairs.

"Well if you had some of the breakfast stuff maybe you wouldn't be so nimble."

The words were muttered under his breath, behind the brown paper bags that would hopefully feed the ten of them.

"Oh come on Derek, with all those hours you put in at the gym you can't tell me that you're tired!"

"Of course not babygirl just that the two of us are here struggling while Reid acts like..."

"An excited little boy?"

Morgan laughed as he realised how spot on Garcia's description was, especially when Reid spotted Jack and Henry sitting and drawing in the conference room and ran to join them.

"Hello Uncle Derek, Uncle Spencer, Auntie Pen."

Jack sat up and smiled warmly at the three adults as they sat around the table with Garcia quickly picking Henry up and placing him on her lap.

"So did you sleep well boys?"

Morgan smiled as he started to open up the bags and the smell of warm food enveloped the room.

"Yeah but Auntie Em snores, really loudly!"

Henry giggled as he finished speaking, he looked at Jack who likewise was laughing but he was hiding his chortling behind his hands.

"Come on boys eat up and then I'll take you to school."

"Yeah Jack we get to ride with Uncle Derek!"

Henry smiled broadly as he tucked into his breakfast, smiles and laughter descending into the conference room which was a welcoming sign as JJ, Dave and Hotch joined the group.

* * *

He was in the apartment, he wanted a change of scenery for this one, a bit of home comfort after living in different vehicles, travelling around the east coast. It was a slight gamble but he knew that they were no closer to finding him and after tomorrow he would be out of the apartment, leaving a departing gift or two of course. He leaned back on the sofa and turned the volume up on the huge tv, letting the room fill with the roar of NASCAR engines, this was all part of his planning, to test out the sound proofing to its limits, if the neighbours didn't complain about the noise tonight then tomorrow when the fun and games started he would be uninterrupted.

* * *

Emily splashed cold water on her face, however nice it had been to spend the night in Aaron's arms the abrupt alarm of Jack and Henry jumping on her had been a stark reminder of where she had slept. They had spent five minutes playing with the boys, tickling, wrestling and cuddling before Aaron had managed to cajole them into the conference room so the two of them could go and get showered and changed before facing the trials of the day ahead. Emily reached over and grabbed a paper towel, patting her face dry when she heard a familiar voice.

"Rough night?"

Emily instantly dropped the paper towel into the sink and turned around to see a tired but smiling Tasha looking at her.

"You're one to talk!"

Emily quickly walked over and hugged her daughter who instantly reciprocated the gesture.

"I'm sorry I couldn't be there yesterday, when we got back you were already asleep and I didn't want to disturb you."

Tasha kept smiling as she pulled slightly away from Emily but she kept a hold of her mother's hands.

"That's ok I was exhausted, I didn't think that it would affect me like that but it did."

"Yes well there's one thing I'm eternally grateful for is that you never developed my way of compartmentalising everything, some things are best not locked away in little boxes."

Emily managed a faint smile as she spoke and Tasha quickly squeezed her hands in support.

"I saw Aaron a minute ago, he said that there was breakfast in the conference room."

"Good idea and then we can see what your plans are for the day."

Tasha nodded as Emily reached around and put her arm around her daughter's waist as the two of them walked out of the bathroom and back towards the bullpen.

* * *

It was hunting day today, the days that he enjoyed the most, although he loved the planning and preparation there was no comparison to when the adrenalin rushed through his body, first there was the hunt, then there was the kill. Both carried their own dangers in being caught but his confidence was at all time high. Locking the apartment securely he pulled the baseball cap tightly onto his head and adjusted the glasses that how adorned his face, the jacket, jeans and t-shirt were all from a thrift store and looked well worm and he certainly looked the part as he climbed into the yellow cab he had chosen for his vehicle to lure the next two contrapasso's. While he was alone he allowed himself the luxury of listening to "Ten-Ten Wins" and their panicked reaction to the three bodies he had left two days previously, they were calling him a 'mad man', someone who was truly evil, he was the 'son of the devil'. The laughter filled the cab as he carried on driving, if only they knew the true reasons for all of this they would thank him, and nobody would miss his next two contrapasso's, they were truly deserving of the punishment that was heading their way.

* * *

Hotch sat down and looked around the table, everyone was there minus Morgan who was currently dropping Jack and Henry off at school, Emily had just returned after leaving Tasha who was currently sitting in his office eating some breakfast.

"Sir we've got them, the ids of the three victims and hang on, yes I've got details about the motorbike from the video taken at the scene too."

Garcia's eager voice spoke as she peered over the top of her laptop while her fingers were still working away on the keyboard, almost instantaneously three photos appeared on the large screen with their names and addresses.

"Good work Garcia. Let's see if there are any links between the victims and then we need to speak to the family and neighbours and see if they spotted anything unusual in the last week. What about the motorbike?"

The room fell silent apart from the noise of Garcia's fingers tapping away rapidly, everyone's eyes were quickly focused on the large screen as the photos moved to the side and a picture of a yellow motorbike appeared alongside a photo of a man and a map of New York.

* * *

He stopped the cab and turned the engine off, the first contrapasso was in his sights, standing with his Styrofoam cup of lukewarm coffee. He tucked the messenger bag safely under the passenger seat before he pocketed the syringe. Five minutes later the body was safely stowed in the trunk of the cab and he was driving the short distance to pick up the next contrapasso, she was going to be the easier of the two, always travelling around in cabs, he knew where she was having lunch and then it was simply a job of picking her up and then the chloroform and air conditioning would get to work. The apartment he had chosen was not in a great neighbourhood, nobody would question him helping people in, all he had to say, if anyone asked, was that they had had a little too much to drink. So forty minutes later both drugged contrapasso's were drooped on the sofa and the door was locked, a smile crept across his face as he realised that the fun was about to start once again. Bolgia 1 was the large black man, Reggie Johnson was his given name, but he knew that Reggie was a pimp, exploiting vulnerable young women. Within moments he lifted the woman up and carried her through to the bathroom, picking up the whip on his return.

He walked through to the kitchen and washed his hands thoroughly, the blood and faeces came off easily but the smell was not so easily masked. He sat down on the stool and opened his messenger bag, quickly extracting the notebook and entered his observations, it was then that he noticed the alarm on his cell phone.

"Shit!"

He slammed the phone down, almost breaking it, the bad news was causing his cheeks to redden, how had they identified the contrapasso so easily? His head lifted up and he caught sight of the dead body on the floor.

"Shit!"

Quickly he gathered his belongings into the messenger bag and walked towards the door, taking the decision to leave by the service entrance and to use the subway to make his exit.

* * *

Hotch had to reach out and grab a hold of Dave's seat as the jet lurched suddenly, his concentration fully on the conversation on the phone until he pocketed his cell and looked at the team.

"NYPD found two bodies in the apartment, no sign of the unsub but the bodies were still warm, they are talking to the neighbours to see if anyone can give us a description."

"Crap we were that close?"

Morgan hit the table in frustration as Dave looked at him.

"Yes but he is starting to make mistakes and we already have his next target in protective custody."

He sat on the bus, the hat and glasses gone, clothes changed and the day old stubble shaved, he took a deep intake of breath as the bus headed south. This was why he had spent so much time planning, it was always good to have a back up contrapasso.


	26. Chapter 26 Upsilon

A/N - In the spirit of giving this is my present to you on my birthday! Best present ever I got a skeleton from my husband so now got to give him a name... ;)

**Chapter 26 – Upsilon**

Morgan opened the laptop as the jet began to descend, almost instantly Garcia's smiling face appeared and everyone on the jet caught sight of Tasha sitting reading in the background.

"Ok we've already got ids on the two victims in the apartment and some crime scene photos, though I wish I hadn't looked at them before uploading them to you."

Garcia pulled a face as everyone on the jet got out their iPads and quickly looked at the photos while Garcia continued.

"Right then first off the male victim in front of the sofa is one Reginald, Reggie, Johnson, 28 from the Bronx. He was well known to the police who identified him at the scene as he has previous arrests for pimping and drug possession, there was also a leather whip found beside him."

"He was whipped to death?"

Reid looked up from his screen and towards Garcia who just shrugged her shoulders, the conversation went silent as she allowed herself time to take a breath.

"Victim number two, please I don't ever, ever want to see photos like that again. Sorry, ok, victim number two is Angel Howard, 25 years old from the Upper East Side, she was a gossip blogger, her site was followed by just under a million people and she was creating quite a name for herself in uncovering sex scandals. Ok here we go, she was found sat on the toilet, shot in the head and then covered in faeces."

"Probably human."

JJ pulled a face as Reid spoke but then a thought crossed her mind.

"If it's the unsub's could we get DNA?"

"No, please can you have these conversations when I'm not around?"

Garcia spoke loudly and as everyone looked at the screen she had placed her hands over her ears but she managed to carry on speaking.

"Jason Crabtree, the owner of the motorbike and registered tenant of the apartment is currently residing in Rikers Prison, serving five years for burglary."

Garcia didn't wait for any response quickly cutting the link, the images from the case were going to haunt her for a while and she didn't need to hear anymore gruesome details.

"Ok JJ and I will go to Rikers the rest of you check out the apartment and see if the unsub left anything as he had to make a hurried exit."

Hotch looked around as everyone nodded, he could see the New York skyline out of the window and he hoped that they were finally catching a break in the case.

* * *

JJ climbed into the passenger seat of the SUV, glad that Hotch had volunteered to drive them to Rikers, there was something that she needed to talk to him about and she wasn't sure that she would be able to do that and drive at the same time. JJ waited for roughly ten minutes, internally debating how she was going to start the conversation, the phone call had left her mind whirling and unable to sleep and she didn't particularly want to pass the burden on but she knew that she was left with little choice.

"Hotch?"

"Uh huh."

"I had a phone call eh..."

JJ paused for a second and concentrated on her watch.

"Early last night when we were at the scene with the three bodies."

"From another source?"

Hotch turned and briefly looked at JJ, he knew that although officially she wasn't the media liaison anymore she still had a great deal of contacts.

"No it was from abroad, Germany to be precise."

JJ turned and looked at Hotch, seconds later she saw the whites of his knuckles as he clenched the steering wheel tightly.

"What did the Ambassador want?"

JJ sighed and turned to look straight ahead at the road as she spoke.

"A family friend died recently and she wants to return to the funeral, apparently she is the daughter's godmother. She wanted me to ask Emily if it was ok with her and Tasha."

"It's nice to know that the Ambassador hasn't lost her ability to cause trouble."

"Sorry Hotch, I didn't know what to do, I'll speak to Emily if you want?"

"No it's fine, I'm sorry that you've been dragged into this. Look we're nearly there now I'll speak to Emily later."

"Ok but let her know that I'm here if she needs me."

Hotch nodded as he looked straight ahead, if there was one thing that could make him angry it was the Ambassador and the pain that she could cause the woman he loved.

* * *

Dave sat in the bar of the hotel, everyone else had already retired to their rooms but he needed a bit of time alone to clear his thoughts. There had been nothing of any use at the apartment but they had sent the faeces to the lab to get DNA tested but then that required the unsub to be on the database already and Dave doubted that very much. JJ and Hotch had struck out at the prison too, Jason Crabtree had given the apartment keys to a local drug dealer who in turn, for a lot of cash, had given the keys to the unsub. Sketches from the neighbours and the dealer had proven inconclusive, the unsub was probably using basic disguises when he had to mingle with the public. Dave raised the small crystal glass to his lips and let the smooth whiskey hit his throat, the peace he had acquired was then shattered as his cell began to move across the bar, quickly Dave picked the vibrating device up.

"Rossi."

"Dave it's Jimmy."

"Hey Jimmy, what's keeping you up late tonight?"

"I've got another name for you."

Dave sat the half empty glass back on the bar as he stood up and started to walk towards the bank of elevators.

* * *

Aaron lay on the bed, his hands behind his head as he listened to the shower running, he wasn't looking forward to the conversation but he wanted it to be him that spoke to Emily, he wanted to be the one to comfort her, to hold her as she processed the conversation.

"Better?"

Emily smiled as she walked out of the bathroom and towards the bed, quickly she climbed onto it and lay next to Aaron.

"Much thanks. Have you spoken to Jack?"

"Yes, he and Henry and chuffed to bits to be staying with Garcia and Tasha."

"I hope they sleep!"

"After one of Garcia's fairytales I guess."

Emily let out a loud laugh as she moved closer to Aaron, her head resting on his shoulder while he moved his arm around her waist both of their eyes focused on the ceiling.

"I've got something that I need to talk to you about Emily."

Emily quickly turned her head and looked into Aaron's eyes.

"JJ had a phone call from Germany yesterday."

Aaron turned his head slightly so their eyes met and he quickly saw the brightness ebb away from Emily's as she placed a cold hand on his naked chest.

"What did she want?"

The bitterness was evident in Emily's voice but Aaron knew that it wasn't directed at him.

"To come back for a funeral."

Emily nodded her head as she pushed herself up and climbed off the bed, pacing around the bed for a minute before she spoke.

"I'd heard that Greta Campbell had died, crap we don't need this, not at the moment and then she has to drag everyone else into it, poor Jen this is the last thing that she needs."

Emily's voice was pitched high, she carried on pacing as she spoke, while Aaron stayed on the bed sitting upright, knowing that Emily would come to him when she needed to.

"I don't have the energy to argue, to fight her at the moment. I can't really deny her as long as she doesn't contact me or Tasha of course."

Aaron nodded his head as Emily slowly walked towards the bed, he could hear the emotion building in her voice and shuffled along so that she could lay next to him, which she duly did, laying her head on his chest. Aaron reached down and stroked her damp soft hair, he could feel the sobs emanating from her body.

"Oh no I have to speak to Tasha!"

"But not now Emily, it's ok I know that this is hard."

Emily slowly brought her head up his body, resting it on his shoulder, it was rare that Emily let her guard down and he couldn't believe how vulnerable she looked.

"I'm sorry you got dragged into this again."

"I wanted to be Emily, we'll get through this, just think of the future, the four of us, a family."

Aaron's smile quickly brought more tears to Emily's face but they were happy ones this time as she thought about Jack, Tasha and Aaron and all they meant to her.


	27. Chapter 27 Bolgia 3, 4 and 5

**Chapter 27 – Bolgia 3, 4 and 5...**

He sat on the bus, his messenger bag protectively sat beside him, providing a barrier so that nobody would try and sit next to him. The baseball cap was pulled over his head so that his eyes were hidden from view as he stared out of the window, letting the road and scenery pass him by as he thought about how close everything had been to collapsing in New York. He had a love hate relationship with technology, it had been technology that had alerted him to the FBI taking his contrapasso but he was also worried about being tracked through his technology by the FBI. He had researched the people who were tracking him and the person who he was most afraid of was the analyst, a Penelope Garcia, she put his hacking and programming skills into perspective, she would be the one, if any of them did actually manage to stop him, to find him, tracking him through the small pieces of technology he had dotted around the country, keeping a close eye on his contrapasso's. As the bus turned off the Interstate and headed towards his destination he took a deep breath and adjusted his cap slightly, now there was one thing certain in his mind, the journey to the centre of hell would now be quicker than even he had anticipated.

* * *

Emily had her eyes shut but she wasn't fully asleep, she was too relaxed and enjoying the comfort of laying next to Aaron, his hand resting gently on the top of her head and rhythmically he stroked her hair, the soft action and silence was having the desired effect as Emily felt her body calm down and start to drift off to sleep. The breathing between the two of them had become slow and easy as Emily's mind drifted off to the beach but then her eyes suddenly shot open as a loud bang erupted into the room.

"Huh?"

Emily sat up slightly and looked at Aaron but already he had pulled away from her and was pulling a white t-shirt over his head as the banging at the door continued, she stayed silent although now she was sitting upright with the sheet pulled up to protect her modesty. Aaron frowned as he reached the door, he put his eye to the peep hole and Emily noticed his body relax slightly as he opened it and Dave hurried into the room the words rushing out of his mouth as he struggled for breath.

"Father Tony Bradley, he's got a congregation in Atlantic City."

Dave looked urgently at Hotch, not even noticing that the unit chief was standing in front of him in boxers and a t-shirt and Emily was sitting on the bed with only a sheet covering her.

"Ok contact Atlantic PD and get them to find Father Bradley as soon as possible, wake the others we might as well get on the jet and get down there ASAP."

Dave nodded as he concentrated on his cell and turned to walk towards the door, only when it was safely shut did Emily stand up, letting the sheet drop onto the bed.

"Well that wasn't too embarrassing."

Hotch grinned as he walked towards the chair where his clothes had been placed earlier.

"I don't think that you were the main thing on his mind, thankfully."

"Yeah I thought for one minute that he was going to have a heart attack, we need to keep an eye on him Aaron."

"This case is affecting him, well it's getting to all of us, I'm going to ring Garcia and see if she can find out some information for us."

Emily nodded as she walked into the bathroom leaving Aaron to speak to Garcia.

* * *

Garcia wasn't in a deep sleep, she was on the bed with Tasha next to her, on her sofa was Anderson and on the floor was the two small figures of Jack and Henry, as soon as her cell started to vibrate she quickly sat up and answered it.

"Hello?"

"Sorry to wake you Garcia."

"Sir of course, is everyone ok?"

Hearing Hotch's voice quickly sent shivers down Garcia's spine as she sat up, reaching for her glasses she put them on and scanned her apartment to ensure that everyone was still there as she listened to Hotch.

"We're fine Garcia, Dave has got another name, Father Tony Bradley from Atlantic City, he may be on the unsubs list so we need all the information on him as soon as possible."

"Of course, how about I try and get access to the CCTV system at Atlantic City, I could run my facial recognition programme to see if we can spot the unsub?"

"Good thinking Garcia, how long will it take you?"

"Not long I'll just grab my laptop."

Garcia's voice was hushed as she carefully got off the bed so as to not disturb Tasha who was still sleeping.

"You can do it from home?"

"Yes, don't worry we're all fine here."

"Thanks Garcia, ring me when you've found anything, we're now heading to the jet."

Garcia put her phone back on the bed as she sat cross legged, leaning against the headboard, now fully awake as the light from the screen filled the room.

* * *

It was dark as he wandered around the streets, after getting off the bus he had quickly changed his clothes, dyed his hair, the baseball cap had been replaced by a hooded sweatshirt that was pulled up over his now blonde hair. He walked at a steady pace, again not wanting to attract any attention to himself, the tower of the church was visible in the distance and he knew that despite the late hour the contrapasso would be there, having phones from the bus station asking to meet him for guidance and to talk about leaving his inheritance to the church. The smile returned to his face as he realised how easy and gullible the contrapasso was, money not religion was his passion and for that the contrapasso would suffer. He reached into his pocket and brought out the cell he had brought off a stand near the bus station, there was another meeting he needed to make, the appointment needed to be in the next hour if possible, he wanted to be on the road again by the time daylight broke and the population of Atlantic City woke to find the carnage he had wrought.

* * *

Garcia's concentration was on the screen as her fingers tapped away, unaware that Tasha had woken and was looking at her.

"Is everything ok?"

"Oh."

Garcia quickly turned around and saw Tasha rubbing the sleep away from her eyes, without thinking Garcia put a finger to her lips so that they wouldn't wake the boys or Anderson in the other room. Tasha nodded her head and lay back down, resting her head on the pillow allowing Garcia to continue with her work.

"What's this?"

Garcia spoke in hushed tones but the noise brought Tasha to sit upright once again as she looked at Garcia's screen.

"Where's that?"

"Atlantic City, I'm trying to hack into their CCTV system but something is blocking me, almost as if someone has hacked in before me."

Tasha lent in closer and then looked at Garcia, a thought having crossed her mind.

"Could it be the unsub?"

Garcia raised her eyebrows at Tasha's comment before she smiled, leant across and planted a kiss on Tasha's cheek.

"You're a genius Tasha!"

Tasha stayed quiet as Garcia tapped away at the keyboard and suddenly the screen changed and the figures of the team filled it instead.

"Garcia what you got?"

Hotch's firm voice came across the system as Garcia ensured that the volume wasn't too loud and when she spoke she gauged her volume carefully so as to not wake the boys.

"I've sent the addresses of the church and home to you, I was trying to get access to the CCTV system when I noticed that the system has already been hacked, Tasha thinks that it could be the unsub."

The jet and bedroom fell silent as Garcia waited for a response.

"If it is can you track him?"

"I'll try my best."

"Ok concentrate on that, we've just heard from Atlantic PD, they've found the body of Father Tony Bradley and are searching the city for the unsub."

"Ok I'll do my best, we've now also got the DNA results in from the faeces found in New York, and I'm running the results through the database."

"Thank you Garcia and thank Tasha too!"

Garcia smiled as she put her arm around Tasha and pulled her closer so that she could wave at everyone on the jet before Hotch cut the link and she lay back down on the bed so Garcia that could fully concentrate on the job in hand.

* * *

The smile on his face was broad as he left the small room, he hadn't realised that he possessed that amount of strength but when he wrapped his hands around her neck, the motion of breaking her neck came easy to him, but then flipping her head completely around had been a different matter, he had to resort to using his knife so that he could literally lift the head from the body. The energy he had used already was immense but he knew that he had to find a little bit more, there was one more place to visit before he left, then his ears pricked up slightly, the sound of sirens in the distance punctuating the night, that was the impetus he needed as he repositioned the messenger bag and carried on his way.

* * *

Reid frowned as they sat in the SUV, an action that had not gone unnoticed by Hotch.

"Reid?"

"I thought that he would have gone back to Washington for Bolgia 5, to garner as much publicity as possible, the media would go crazy for the murder of a corrupt politician."

"Yes but for once we have now got him on the back foot, he is panicking and rushing, he is going to start to make more and more mistakes."

Reid pondered Hotch's answer for a moment before he nodded his head as Hotch's cell began to ring.

"Garcia?"

"I've got a name for you."


	28. Chapter 28  Iota

**A/N – Sorry for the long delay in updating, my boys have both had chickenpox and then I had my grandmother's funeral but now hopefully everything is back on track, thanks to everyone who has shown patience and is still reading your thoughts mean a great deal as we near the end.**

**Chapter 28 – Iota**

"_I've got a name for you."_

The sound of Hotch's heavy sigh of relief was clearly audible down the line.

"Go on Garcia."

"The DNA found in the faeces in New York came back to a match to a Thomas Monroe, a journalist in D.C."

"That's great, what about the hacker?"

"I'm still working on it, I'm going into the office as I need my bigger babies to deal with this one."

"Ok thank you."

Hotch kept a hold of his cell as he hit another button as Dave continued to drive the SUV.

"Turn around Dave we're going back to the jet."

Dave nodded his head as he searched for an area to turn the SUV around as Hotch began to talk to JJ.

"I want you and Emily to stay here, examine the scenes thoroughly, the three kills were in rapid succession he may have made more mistakes. The name Garcia has given us could be a fake lead but for the moment it's the only one that we've got."

"No problems we're on our way to the second scene now, the first scene was definitely rushed, there wasn't the precise nature of the previous ones and we've got an appointment with the ME in a couple of hours."

"Ok keep me posted."

Hotch leant his head back against the seat and felt six eyes concentrated on him.

"Eyes on the road Dave, Reid and Morgan start thinking about if Thomas Monroe is our unsub where is he going to go next?"

The SUV fell silent as Dave sped up a little bit, the need to get to D.C was growing more urgent by the second.

* * *

JJ finished the conversation with Hotch and turned to look at Emily as they walked out of the church, the cell still in her hand.

"The others..."

"Don't worry I got the gist."

Emily quickly cut JJ off but then as she finished she realised the severity of her tone and how much she needed to speak to her friend about another matter.

"Sorry, I'm so sorry Jen, I didn't mean it like that."

Emily reached across and placed her hand on JJ's shoulder, gently increasing the pressure so that the blonde stopped and turned to face her.

"I know Em, don't worry."

JJ smiled faintly at Emily but the brunette left her hand touching JJ, moving it down slightly to the elbow as they slowly made their way to the bureau SUV. Only when she was sat in the front, her hands resting on the steering wheel did Emily feel that the time was right, the two of them, she needed to thank and apologise in equal measure to her best friend.

"I heard that you had the pleasure of a conversation with my mother the other night."

Emily hadn't started the engine but her hands had clasped the wheel tightly as she bent forward and rested her chin on the wheel, turning her head slightly so that the soft smile on her face was visible as JJ reached up and ran her fingers through her blonde hair.

"Emily, you've got nothing to apologise for, nothing to feel guilty about."

JJ smiled as she brought her hand down from her head and reached across, placing it on Emily's still tightly clenched fingers.

"Oh but I do Jen, you didn't deserve to be dragged into my mess."

"Em we're family, you're mess is mine too!"

JJ laughed as Emily softened her grip on the wheel, letting her hands gradually drift away as she leant back in the seat.

"So how was she? The Ambassador?"

"It was a two minute phone call Emily, but I suppose scared, it wasn't an easy question for her to ask."

Emily sighed and she reached forward and turned the key to start the engine.

"I know Jen, and I said to Aaron I can't deny her the opportunity to grieve, that would be wrong. Anyway I suppose that we'd better get going to the next scene."

"I thought that sleeping with the unit chief might have brought us a bit of leeway!"

"Ha we should be so lucky! If anything I would have thought that taming the wild stallion that is the legendary David Rossi, with all his contacts would be far more beneficial!"

Emily laughed as she finished, a glint in her eyes as she turned to glance at JJ who shook her head quickly but she too failed to suppress the laughter and it was a welcome relief to the both of them as Emily closed in on the next murder scene.

* * *

He shut and locked the door behind him as he left the apartment, they were closing in on him, he was lucky in New York and now that he was in D.C he didn't want to rely on luck anymore, he had to go back to following the plan, purposefully and deliberately. Thomas Monroe, Bolgia 6, had just been dealt with, a lead clock crushing his windpipe almost instantly. Now he was heading to the District Courthouse, Bolgia 7, the next contrapasso was due to be released in an hour, he had filed papers to ensure that it would happen. It was coming up to 11am and although he wasn't going to rush, he still wanted the sense of power, achievement, glory as he finished transcending the contrapasso's to hell but he also had the hunters to consider now. He needed to pick up the white Prius and be making the long journey south by 4pm at the latest, leaving a further four contrapasso's in his wake. Even though the hunters were closing in, the last two contrapasso's were going to shock them to the core so that they would be unable to find him and his mission would finally be complete.

* * *

Emily puffed out her cheeks as she and JJ walked out into the fresh air, glad to be out of the morgue and the grim nature of the three bodies, neither woman said anything until they were in the relative comfort of the SUV.

"Those places always make me feel so dirty."

Emily cringed slightly as she ran her fingers through her hair.

"I know what you mean, shall I ring Hotch about the tattoos?"

JJ sat back in the passenger seat and looked across at Emily who nodded her head, the tattoos on the three victims were present but the quality was definitely not, but as JJ got her cell out it immediately started to ring.

"Hi Garcia."

"Where are you guys?"

JJ frowned as she put the call on speaker so that Emily could listen, for Garcia not to make a warm friendly greeting was unusual and that meant that something serious was happening.

"In the SUV, we got held up at the ME's office we were just about to call Hotch to fill him in."

"Never mind about that, I need you to get back to one of the crime scenes, I've tracked the signal and I believe that there may be monitoring devices at the crime scenes and the victim's houses!"

Garcia's words were rapidly spoken, the urgency in her voice unmistakable as JJ and Emily looked at each other.

"Ok Garcia we'll go back to Father Bradley's house seeing as it is near where his body was found. What are we looking for?"

JJ carried on speaking as Emily quickly pulled away from the car park, a third of her mind on driving, a third on the conversation with Garcia and the last third wondering just how clever the unsub was.

* * *

"Fifteen?"

Hotch's voice suddenly pitched high as he spoke, the action not going unnoticed as Rossi turned to face him even though the call from Garcia was on speaker so they could all hear.

"Yes sir, that was from the first two houses they are now checking the third, but we've left them in place as I didn't want to alarm him."

"That's good Garcia, is there any way you can track these to find future victims?"

"That's what I'm working on as we speak sir."

"Ok let me know as soon as you find anything."

Garcia nodded her head as she finished the call, even though she knew that the action could not be seen, her fingers tapping furiously on the keyboard as she finally knew that she could find him.


	29. Chapter 29  4 more Bolgia

Chapter 29 – 4 more Bolgia

JJ watched as Emily walked into the coffee shop, she stayed sitting in the SUV and brought her knees up slightly before she stretched out her legs and rested her feet on the driver's seat, only when she was comfortable did she retrieve her cell and search for the unfamiliar number. JJ drummed her fingers on her knee as she waited for someone to answer, a slight hesitation in her voice when it finally happened.

"Hello can I speak to Ambassador Prentiss please?"

"Who's calling please?"

"Special Agent Jennifer Jareau."

"I'll just get the Ambassador for you Agent Jareau."

JJ closed her eyes as she watched Emily order the coffees, it wasn't long though before another voice came over the line.

"Agent Jareau?"

"Good afternoon Ambassador, I have some news for you."

"Yes?"

Even though they were thousands of miles apart JJ could sense the emotion and urgency in the Ambassador's voice.

"Emily won't object to you returning as long as you don't contact her or Tasha."

"Of course, thank you so much Agent Jareau I won't trouble you again."

JJ opened her eyes as the phone call was abruptly cut off by the Ambassador, it was just in time as she saw Emily approaching with their coffees.

* * *

Tasha was sat on the sofa in Hotch's office, she had closed the blinds and the door was also shut but Garcia knew that she was hiding out there, she had been hesitant about using the office but it was private and safe so that was her two main priorities sorted. A couple of books lay discarded on the floor, an empty can of diet coke beside them as Tasha had wedged her iPad on her stomach, using a cushion to prop it up so that she could watch the rolling news in the hope that it would send her to sleep. Tasha's eyelids were beginning to close, the fluttering was getting longer but then two sounds immediately woke her up, once she instantly recognised as being her mom ringing her cell, the other took a few seconds to place but then she saw the red dot in the corner of her iPad and Tasha recognised the alarm Garcia had set up for her. Realising that the two sounds were probably linked Tasha leant down and picked up her cell from the floor.

"Mom?"

"Hey sweetie, where are you?"

Emily was standing outside the house of David Hodges who had been the third victim in Atlantic City, JJ had told her that she had spoken to the Ambassador and Emily knew that she had to speak to her daughter sooner rather than later.

"Um, in Aaron's office, is that ok?"

"I'm sure it is, are you ok?"

"Fine, getting a little bored but my classes are due to start next week so that should keep me occupied."

"Good, I'm sorry I haven't been around that much lately."

"It's ok mom, I know what you're dealing with and I'd much rather you be out there trying to catch this psycho than here annoying me!"

"True! Hey listen Tasha I need to talk to you about something."

Emily took a deep breath and put her free hand up onto her forehead in a vain attempt to stop the throbbing that had just begun.

"Is it to do with Grandma?"

"How?"

"The alarm just sounded on my iPad."

"She didn't waste any time then."

"Mom?"

"Sorry sweetie. Your grandmother needs to come back for a funeral, I said that it was ok but she wasn't to contact either of us, are you ok with that?"

"Eh, you spoke to her?"

"No JJ did."

The line went silent as Emily let her daughter process the conversation, biding her time by clearing a patch of dirt in front of her with her boots while she waited.

"I guess it you're ok then I am, give JJ a hug for me."

"Will do, take care Tasha."

Emily smiled as she pocketed her cell, she heard footsteps behind her and she turned to see JJ arriving, quickly Emily moved over and hugged her friend.

"Em?"

"From Tasha and me, thank you Jen."

JJ smiled and shook her head.

"Not a problem Em, come on Hotch needs to speak to us and Garcia is on the line too."

Emily nodded as the two of them quickly walked back towards the SUV which had quickly become their mobile office.

* * *

Garcia had made sure that the door to her office was shut tight, although she was working hard to help the team find the unsub it had also meant that the methods she had had to employ were slightly unethical and the last thing she needed was some busybody from accounts wandering in and discovering her illegal activity. Suddenly in front of her one of the screens came to life, two windows popped open, one showing Morgan, Reid, Hotch and Rossi, the other had Emily and JJ huddled together in the SUV.

"Oh hi guys, sorry for the late call."

Garcia smiled as she saw darkness around Emily and JJ, it was now nearing 10pm and she knew how tired and frustrated the team were but all she could do was hope that her information could help them.

"What have you got Garcia?"

Hotch leant forward slightly as he spoke, it had been a long day for them in Washington, the lead about Thomas Monroe had only led them to his body and as they inspected the grim scene call after call had come in until they had yet another four crime scenes. They were now sat in the apartment of Megan Richardson, where they had earlier found her body, the fourth victim of the day, Bolgia 9, who had sliced into six pieces by an extremely sharp sword.

"I have managed to piggy back on the signal that is being transmitted and through using a few, how shall I put this, creative techniques, I have located another thirty devices."

"30?"

"At least, it's a long process Sir."

"Ok that's great work Garcia."

"Thanks Sir, I'll carry on until I'm certain that I've uncovered all of the devices."

"Thank you Garcia, I suggest we all head back and rendezvous at the office first thing in the morning and see if we can work out from the locations where the unsub is going to head to next."

Garcia clicked off the link before she wheeled her chair around to carry on her hacking activities.

* * *

He had made good time in the Prius, driving through the night was something that he enjoyed and it was certainly safer in terms of keeping hidden than using a plane and flying down, plus he needed to make a stop at Birmingham, Alabama before he reached his final destination. Bolgia 10, the next contrapasso, had been chosen, not just because of his illegal counterfeiting operations but necause it would throw the hunters off his track and he could continue further south without being deterred. He knew that by stopping in the middle of the night would afford him the security of darkness and that the body wouldn't be discovered until lunchtime the following day at the earliest. He stopped the Prius outside the suburban home, the most unlikely home for an internationally renowned counterfeiter, he needed the extra time that this contrapasso would give him as the next contrapasso was going to take some time and he wanted to exploit it as painfully as possible.


	30. Chapter 30 The Last Bolgia

**Chapter 30 – The last Bolgia**

Emily and JJ were the last ones to arrive back at Quantico, which was natural seeing as they had had to drive all the way from Atlantic City, though they had shared the driving so they at least had managed a couple of hours sleep each. Their arms were full as they walked up the stairs, it had been Emily's suggestion to stop for coffee and bagels, as always her stomach ruling her head but then JJ had come up with the idea that they should at least get enough for the rest of the team and reluctantly Emily had agreed. As the two female agents entered the conference room they were immediately greeted by a tired and solemn mood, quietly they put their offerings down on the table as Morgan stood up.

"I'll go and get Garcia."

Hotch nodded his head as everyone else sat and silently started eating and drinking in the two minutes that it took for Garcia to arrive and having spent the entire night working away she looked absolutely shattered.

"Hey guys, it's so good to have you all back here."

Garcia smiled as she sat down and opened her laptop up, quickly tapping away before a large map appeared on the screen on the wall, the map was of the Eastern half of the United States and it was littered with little red dots.

"Ok as you can see I've tracked a lot of devices, 88 to be precise."

"Are you any closer to tracking the origin of the signal?"

Hotch glanced away from the big screen as he spoke, focusing his attention onto Garcia who shook her head.

"No sorry Sir, that is proving annoyingly difficult at the moment, I am starting to think that one of the devices may be the unsub's source."

Hotch nodded his head as he listened to Garcia's response, his gaze turning back to the map, his reply cut off before he even had a chance to start.

"I've found out who lives at the forty locations where the 88 devices are. The information is all on your iPads and I made you a file Spence."

As Garcia finished she looked up from her laptop and saw Dave smiling warmly at her before he turned to Hotch who nodded his head in approval as Reid eagerly grabbed the file in front of him, quickly taking notes as he worked his way through the file. Emily stood up and stretched her long limbs, sleeping in the SUV and the lack of sleep causing her slight pain which only eased when she was standing. Her intense hazelnut eyes focused in on the map as Emily took a couple of pigeon steps forward before the Styrofoam cup edged closer to her lips but then a frown crossed her brow and quickly she walked back to the table and placed her coffee back down.

"Hang on, what about that other device? Its way outside our unsub's hunting zone."

Emily pointed to the map as she spoke, her finger attracting the team's attention to the lone red dot in the South.

"Uh yeah, it's the only one there at that location, most other locations have two devices at least, I thought that it was a mistake at first but it is definitely linked to the other devices."

Emily nodded as she stood back up again, her legs and back definitely protesting against the hard chair, instinctively she wandered back over to the map, her eyes transfixed by the one lone red dot.

"What information do you have about the occupants of the house where that device is located?"

Emily turned and looked at Garcia who shrugged her shoulders as she held out Emily's iPad.

"Not much I'm afraid sweetie."

Emily stiffly walked over and took a hold of the iPad, she stayed standing beside Garcia as she looked at the driver's licence. The photo was of a man in his fifties, grey flecks throughout his short cropped black hair, the name on the licence read Lewis Spencer, the frown and headache increased slightly as Emily walked around the table.

"What is it Em?"

JJ turned around in her chair as Emily walked behind her, the blonde agent could sense that something was bothering her friend.

"I know him."

"You do?"

Morgan suddenly sat up in his chair and looked at Emily who was still looking at the photo on the iPad as all eyes in the conference room now fell on her.

"Yes definitely."

Emily's voice rose slightly as she lifted her gaze and looked at the team.

"I met him in France when I was working for Interpol, he was a contact I used, he provided me with fake passports and other documents."

"Bolgia 10!"

Reid's high pitched voice interrupted Emily's memory and she was suddenly brought back to the case as Hotch checked his watch.

"6am, I hope we're not too late."

Emily stayed standing, her mouth slightly agape as Hotch grabbed his cell and walked out of the room.

"Why would he go so far out of his comfort zone?"

Morgan swivelled around and faced Reid who slowly brought his head up from the file in front of him.

"For the perfect contrapasso, he has shown us that before, it is all about completing the circle as true to Dante as possible."

"I think that we need to concentrate on the ninth circle now, the potential victims will be in this pile and we need to identify them as soon as possible, maybe then we'll be able to catch him in the act."

Dave spoke calmly but there was an undercurrent to his tone, one of anger and frustration at the unsub.

Dawn was breaking as he entered Dallas, he stopped briefly at a McDonald's, using the bathroom and grabbing a coffee before he got back in the car and drove further into the city. Seven minutes later he had reached his destination for the day and he parked the Prius up outside the small office building, his appointment with the lawyer wasn't until 10am but he had plenty to do in the meantime as he reached into the messenger bag and pulled out his notepad, updating the notes on the last seven contrapasso's and checking his notes on how he was going to use just one contrapasso to complete the ninth circle of hell.


	31. Chapter 31 Phi

**Chapter 31 – Phi**

Hotch walked back into the conference room and shut the door behind him, he stayed standing as he felt all eyes turn towards him.

"We were too late, Birmingham PD found a body at the house. We're not going down there though, CDC has been called to the scene as the victim is in a pretty bad way, seemingly killed by a quick acting but as yet unidentified disease. It would be a waste of our resources to go down there at the moment, he was killed in the middle of the night so nobody was able to witness anything."

Hotch stayed standing as he finished, anxious to know what everyone else thought was now going to be the best course of action.

"We definitely need to concentrate on the next two contrapasso's, we need to get ahead of this bastard, catch him in the act."

Hotch nodded as he listened to Rossi speak but Reid quickly cleared his throat and started to pass around the information he had put to one side from the file Garcia had compiled for him.

"These are the ones that I think are worth a closer look."

Hotch nodded once again as he walked back towards the table and took his seat between Dave and Emily before he picked up the sheets of paper and concentrated on the grim task ahead of them.

* * *

He triumphantly closed his notebook and stowed it away in his messenger bag before he carefully brought out the packaged syringe and small vial of clear liquid, unwrapping the syringe before he squinted slightly as he poked the tip of the syringe into the vial and pulled back on the sharp object. He wrapped a leather glove around the loaded device before he adjusted his sunglasses and took a breath as the clock on the dashboard clicked around to show 09:57am. Opening the door he walked purposefully into the building, smiling warmly to the receptionist as he introduced himself and he didn't have to wait long before the lawyer appeared and showed him to his office.

"Good morning Mr Dann, I'm Chris Petersen."

The lawyer walked behind his desk and stood just in front of his chair as he smiled and held out his hand towards him, the smile grew broader on his face as he took his hand from his pants pocket, hiding the syringe in his hand until he clasped Petersen's wrist.

"Oh I know who you are."

Quickly he pressed down on the end of the syringe and its contents emptied into Petersen's wrist, causing the lawyer to wince with pain but the sound did not last long before he slumped into his chair.

"So it's true, the bigger you the harder you fall!"

He failed to stop the slight laughter escape his mouth as he walked around the large desk and stood in front of the blonde haired lawyer.

"Oh you and I are going to have some fun, you're going to regret hurting that beautiful daughter of yours."

The snarl replaced the grin on his face as he walked over to the window in the office and quickly opened it before he moved back and manoeuvred the lawyer out of the window, pleased that his immaculate planning had given him the foresight to move the Prius around so all he had to do was put his new contrapasso into the back of the vehicle and drive. As he headed out of Dallas he breathed a sigh of relief that it had all passed without incident and he was on time to reach the warehouse outside of D.C just before nightfall.

* * *

Emily sat in the passenger seat of the SUV, her eyes nearly closed but she knew that she couldn't, wouldn't, fall asleep. It wasn't going to be a long journey and she didn't want to embarrass herself when Dave was driving by snoring loudly or something else much worse. They were heading to the home of George Muller who was one of the prospective contrapasso's Reid had picked out and his profile certainly fitted the next circle but they had also found three more likely suspects so the team had quickly split up to track them down and ensure that the unsub hadn't got to them already. Emily was resting her head against the back of the seat as her cell began to ring on the dashboard, wearily she leant forward and picked it up, and recognising the ringtone as that of her daughter Emily wondered what she wanted.

"Hey."

"Mom?"

Emily quickly sat up and fully opened her eyes, she could tell her daughter was on the verge on tears as she spoke.

"What's the matter Tasha?"

Emily didn't mean to snap or sound sharp but she was running on empty and it felt like she hadn't stopped for months.

"The alarm on my iPad, it's going off again."

"Tasha you know your grandmother is travelling back to the states, stop worrying."

"Mom it's not grandmother, it's my father."

Emily frowned at the thought but then took a deep breath.

"Tasha your father's a lawyer, he's probably just travelling to see a client, I know that you don't want to see him but until he knocks on our door we've got bigger things to deal with at the moment."

Emily sighed as she listened to her daughter sniffle down the line.

"Ok mom, sorry."

"No worries, where are you?"

"Back home, I was bored and needed some stuff from here."

"Ok well I'll ring you later if I get the chance."

Emily quickly cut the call off as they entered the outskirts of D.C and leaned back into her seat once again as she felt Dave's eyes on her.

"What?"

"Hey ok, I was just wondering if everything was ok?"

Emily sighed once again as she slowly nodded her head.

"Sorry Dave, I think that the lack of sleep is finally catching up with me."

"How about we stop for coffee and some lunch after we're through with this?"

"Sounds good, hopefully that will take my mind off everything."

Dave smiled as he stopped at a red light.

"So what was up with Tasha?"

"Apparently her father is on the move, it's probably nothing but coming on the back of her grandmother returning its making her a bit emotional."

"Petersen's on the move?"

Emily nodded her head as she looked at Dave.

"What you think there's something in it?"

"Probably not, you're right he's just moving around to meet some clients."

Emily sighed once again as she turned away to look out of the window, but Dave's mind was still working as he drove, wracking his mind to think about treachery, the ninth circle of hell, and if there could be any way Chris Petersen could be linked to it, instantly making a mental note to ring Garcia and as her to check it out as soon as he was alone.

* * *

Garcia stood in the break area, refilling her white mug that was adorned with large pink flowers, her eyes were tired but she knew that she couldn't stop yet, not when she was so close, but what she needed, craved, was a break from the screens, hence the reason she was stood here, stirring her tea. But after five minutes she picked up her custom painted mug and walked back towards her abode. Feeling slightly refreshed she decided to try a new tack in tracking the unsub, putting her tea to one side Garcia brought forward her favourite keyboard and started to enter the new search parameters that she had thought of.

* * *

Dave was true to his word and after learning that George Muller was away in Mexico for a month and having actually spoken to him they had quickly headed to a nearby diner and ordered coffee and a burger each. Both sat quietly eating as Emily's cell began to vibrate across the Formica table. Emily put her burger down and her eyes met Dave's as he hands reached down.

"Garcia?"

"Good I've got you, is Rossi with you?"

"Yes hang on I'll put you on speaker."

Emily looked around but once she was assured that they had some privacy put the cell down on the table.

"I've got him, well a name at least."

"Go on Garcia."

Dave spoke urgently as he and Emily leant forward towards the cell.

"Richard Turner, 37 years old, lives in Rockville and used to be a nurse at George Washington hospital up until two months ago."

Dave nodded as he quickly noticed the colour drain from Emily's face and he reached across and gently touched her suddenly cold hand.

"Emily?"

"He was Natasha's nurse was she was in hospital."


	32. Chapter 32 Treachery

**Chapter 32 – Treachery**

Without giving it another thought whatsoever Emily grabbed her cell off the table and ended the call just as Garcia was about to reply, it didn't take her a second to scroll around and find Tasha's contact details.

"Damn!"

Emily tried not to let her voice falter, let her emotions overcome her, as the call went straight through to voicemail, without bring her gaze up to Dave Emily quickly tried the number of their condo.

"Yeah Hotch, Emily recognised the name straight away, she's trying to get hold of her now...ok no worries."

Emily brought her eyes up as she carried on trying to reach Tasha and looked at Dave who smiled as he put his cell down, reaching across to touch Emily softly on the elbow.

"Hotch and Morgan are going to Turner's house now, you and I are going to your place ok?"

Emily nodded her head as she swallowed hard, knowing that if she opened her mouth only tears would appear, slowly she put her cell away and stood up, not even noticing as Dave opened his wallet and left several bills on the table, she didn't even complain as Dave got in the driver's seat as they quickly drove towards Emily's condo.

* * *

The wasn't much light in the warehouse and it was the way that he liked it, he had driven the Prius inside before safely enclosing himself and the contrapasso inside, there were three rooms he had built inside the warehouse but it was on the edge where he stood with the contrapasso in front of him. Silently he stripped the clothing off of Petersen, earlier in the journey, at some point on the I-81, he had tossed Petersen's wallet, keys, cell phone, watch and ring out of the car window. The contrapasso was now semi-conscious as he stood naked in front of him, he grabbed Petersen's wrists firmly and pulled them behind Petersen's back before he used the plastic zip tie to secure them.

"AAAHHHHH!"

The scream of anguish left Petersen's mouth as he quickly opened his eyes and took in where he was, but there was no escape. He reached behind him to the unit he had built against the outer wall and picked up the silver sword, although it was old it was still a lethal weapon and as he showed it to the contrapasso the fear of it showed in his eyes. Using the sharp tip he pointed to the room to the left of them and without objection walked over and into it, only when he had shut the door tight did the cold air begin to bite, he was glad of the thermal clothing he was wearing but could only laugh as the naked contrapasso started to shudder violently.

"Oh but don't cry yet, the fun is only just beginning!"

Smoothly he rested the sword against the door before he pushed the shivering Petersen into the chair and locked his wrists, ankles and neck in tight, the last thing he needed was any sudden movement. Once he was satisfied that Petersen wasn't going anywhere he walked over and picked up the bag he had left previously and carefully extracted his tattooing pen.

"You have the honour of being the only contrapasso for this circle of hell Mr Petersen, normally there should be four but you are a special contrapasso so not the one brand for you but four, so where shall I start?"

The evil grin appeared once again as he waved the sharp implement in front of Petersen's eyes before he settled on the right bicep and set to work.

"So this is hell Mr Petersen, the ninth circle to be precise, treachery. Round one, the first tattoo, for traitors to kindred, you used your own daughter, exploited her, to bribe the BAU to come down to see you in order to further your own career, I think that round one goes to you."

He blew on the right bicep as he finished the tattoo, squinting slightly as he examined his work before he reached to the floor and picked up the bottle of water and took a sip. Regaining his composure he looked at the tears beginning to form in Petersen's eyes and raised an eyebrow in response before he picked up the pen and started work on the left thigh.

"Round two, treachery against political entities, oh where shall I start? I think that your dealings with Madam Ambassador Prentiss qualify you on that one."

The screams left Petersen's mouth as he was unable to contain the pain any longer.

"Just kill me please!"

"Already? I was hoping that you'd last a bit longer Mr Petersen, I've still got two more tattoos to do as yet!"

The tears streamed down Petersen's face but that only increased his pleasure as he moved up to the left forearm and got to work once again.

"Round three, traitor to your guests, you know that this is the once that convinced me that you would be perfect for all four rounds. You took photos of your guest one fateful night, knowing fore well who she was and that you could then use them to your advantage, but you never banked on gaining a child from that meeting but still you used that as well. Emily Prentiss never deserved that and she'll certainly thank me when I present her with your body."

The anger grew in his voice as the sobs emanated from Petersen's body and he knew that he had to do the next tattoo then, before he lost any more composure. His hand moved down to the right thigh as the words spat out once again.

"Round four, the last one, a traitor to your country. I think that your whole life has been about you, not a care in the world about the consequences to your actions and how your little games affect your country. Bribing an Ambassador, influencing the FBI, what if a terrorist chose to attack, you wouldn't care who was hurt as long as you and your career are looked after."

The anger changed to laughter as the screams bounded out of Petersen's mouth, the freezing air only adding to the pain and fear he was feeling.

"Ok now that is done we need to move once again, your punishment is about to begin."

* * *

Emily jumped out of the SUV before Dave had even had the chance to kill the engine, running towards the stairs instead of waiting for the elevator, but Dave wasn't far behind her and as he reached the door he found it open and Emily stood, alone, in the kitchen.

"She's not here!"

There was no mistaking the urgency and emotion in Emily's voice as she swallowed hard in a vain attempt to keep the tears at bay. Dave smiled warmly as he reached across and put a comforting hand on Emily's shoulder.

"Look we know that Tasha is not a target, there is now way that she fits the unsubs victimology, we need to get back to the office and work the case from there, he's close I know that much. Write Tasha a note telling her where you are and you need to speak to her, we can get Garcia to track her down when we get back."

Emily nodded her head as she reached for the pad of paper she kept near the fridge that they used to write down if any groceries were needed, her hand shaking as she wrote but it didn't take long as she tucked it under the kettle before they headed back to the SUV and Quantico.

* * *

The yellow van hadn't been a conscious decision, just a practical one, the price had been good, especially as it was a cash transaction, it hadn't needed any work done on it and had no signage adorning it. He used a trolley to manoeuvre the large block of ice onto the back, satisfied that he could leave the engine running and the ice wouldn't melt, after all the ninth circle of hell was all about encasing the contrapasso's in ice, not a pool of water. As he drove out of the warehouse he knew that this was going to be his riskiest move to date, driving to Quantico and leaving the contrapasso on their doorstep, all he had to do was to get out of there before they discovered the van.


	33. Chapter 33 Kappa

**Chapter 33 – Kappa**

"I'll get some agents to sit outside on the off chance that Turner returns."

Morgan nodded as Hotch quickly walked to one side and started to speak on his cell. Neither of them had really expected to find Turner there but it had had to be done, his registered vehicle was in the drive and the small house was clear of anything incriminating, no laptop, no phone, nothing, it was as sterile as the hospital where he had worked in. Morgan leant up against the door of the SUV as he pushed his sunglasses up the bridge of his nose as Hotch wandered back over, the stern look adorning the unit chief's face.

"Ok the surveillance team will be here in twenty, I also spoke to JJ she's given a briefing to the press and Richard Turner's details are all over the media. Garcia is tracking his financials and everyone else is heading back to regroup."

"What about Petersen?"

"We're still not sure if he's a target, that's another thing we need to look at."

Morgan nodded as he turned and opened the door to the SUV, he knew that Hotch not only wanted to get back to talk to the team but to also check on Emily.

* * *

Garcia took a deep breath as she leant forward and put her head in her hands, there was so much that she needed to do and she was struggling. Bringing her head up Garcia wheeled her chair over to the screen and keyboard that was working on tracking Turner's financials when a knock at the door caught her attention but she didn't turn around, she hadn't the time for the formality.

"Come in."

Garcia carried on typing away as she heard her door open and as the voice spoke a shiver ran down her spine.

"Technical Analyst Garcia."

Upon hearing Erin Strauss's voice Garcia spun around and tried to maintain her composure.

"Ma'am?"

A frown crossed Garcia's brow as she saw that the Section Chief was not alone.

"There's nothing to worry about Miss Garcia, I thought that under the circumstances that an extra pair of hands might be useful."

Erin Strauss smiled as she moved aside and Kevin Lynch stepped forward and gave his girlfriend a large smile.

"Oh thank you Ma'am, it certainly would be welcome."

"Good, now I'll leave Mr Lynch in your capable hands."

Strauss smiled as she turned and left, leaving Garcia with Kevin with a big inane grin on his face. Garcia shook a head but the small smile told Kevin that he was much needed not just for his technical skills but more the emotional support as well.

"Right I suppose I'd better get you up to speed."

"Uh Section Chief Strauss has already done that sweet pea."

"Ok so you can get right to work then! You can take over tracking Turner's financials while I continue looking for the source of the data devices."

Kevin nodded his head as he sat down on the chair and quickly started work but moments later the quiet work was disrupted once again as a breathless Emily burst into the room.

"Hey Em is everything ok?"

Garcia quickly turned around as Kevin stayed staring at the screen, although he was friends with the BAU team he would never share the closeness that the work brought to the team.

"Hmm I don't know Pen, it's probably nothing but given Turner's previous relationship with Tasha..."

"Em, dearest, its ok come on take a seat."

Garcia smiled as she patted the chair next to her own and gratefully Emily sat down, emotionally and physically exhausted.

"I can't get hold of Tasha, she's not answering her cell and she's not at home, when I last spoke to her umm, it didn't go great."

"Don't worry sweetie I'm sure that she is fine but to be on the safe side I'll track her cell phone signal and if it is ok with you I can hack her bank details too?"

Emily slowly nodded her head and brought it up to look at Garcia.

"Please I just need you to find her."

Garcia just nodded as she reached across and touched Emily's hand before the brunette stood up and swallowed hard, unable to say a word as she walked out of the room.

* * *

Hotch sat in his chair alone in the office, Reid, Morgan and Dave were in the conference room while JJ was working on some media links. He was waiting patiently as he knew that Emily was back and that the first place, after seeing Garcia, would be to seek him out. Emily wandered up the stairs, her bleary eyes saw three figures sitting in the conference room as she then looked across and saw that the blinds were shut in Hotch's office, without thinking she opened the door and closed it behind her.

"Emily."

Hotch quickly stood up and walked over to Emily, he could see the tears forming in her eyes as he quickly wrapped his arms her and felt her tears start to trickle down and hit his neck.

"It's going to be ok Emily."

"I can't find her Aaron, I was awful to her earlier and now..."

"Shh Emily, take a minute you're allowed that."

Aaron held her tightly as Emily came to terms with her emotions, a couple of minutes later she lifted her head up and Aaron moved his hand to gently wipe the tears away.

"Better?"

"A little, I'll feel a lot better when I speak to Tasha, god Aaron what is about me that attracts these freaks?"

A small snigger left Aaron's mouth as he kept his hands on Emily and walked her over to the sofa.

"I think you might be over reacting slightly!"

"Yeah well maybe but Petersen is on the move and Turner worked in the hospital when Tasha was in there and to top off my mother is returning to the states, this is turning out to be one of the worst days of my life."

"Maybe if you tried to relax a little you could tell me what you can remember about Richard Turner?"

Aaron lent across and kissed Emily softly on the lips and slowly he felt her body begin to relax, he kept the contact up until he was sure that he had accomplished what he had set out to do.

"Urrggghh you're going to stop there?"

Emily smiled as she spoke but Aaron just shook his head, they both had strict rules about their relationship at work.

"Ok I get it I'm relaxed now!"

"Good, now I know that this is going to be hard but you recognised the name straight away, I was there at the hospital with you and I cannot remember Richard Turner at all."

Emily screwed her face up slightly as she thought back to the time when Tasha had been hospitalised due to complications from her attack.

"He was there on nights, you were with Jack then, I didn't sleep that much and he used to bring me coffee when he came in to check on her. He was pleasant enough, nothing that sent any alarm bells ringing, he was professional and courteous."

"Ok that's good, come on let's go and see what the others have got."

Emily nodded as she stood up and took a deep breath, allowing herself a last embrace with Aaron before they left the comfort and privacy of his office.

* * *

His eyes were wide open, scanning the road and the scenery around him, especially as he neared the target. He knew that the vehicle he was driving was pretty conspicuous and having turned the radio on five minutes ago he also knew that they had tracked him down releasing his name to the media. He raised an eyebrow in acknowledgment of the good work the hunters had done but that did put a slight spanner in the works, glad that he had changed his appearance once again so that the photo in the media looked nothing like him. He sucked in his bottom lip as he saw the marines jogging in the road ahead, it was at that moment that he knew that it was going to be too dangerous, the risk of capture too great and he still had one contrapasso to go, without another thought he turned the van around and headed back towards D.C, glad that once again he had had a backup plan.

* * *

Tasha's head was pounding as she shut the door to the condo behind her, she had had a heavy session with the rape counsellor and things were still whirring around her head, she dropped her bag by the table in the entrance hall and carried on walking to the sofa, quickly collapsing on it and closing her eyes.

It was the buzzer that woke her, the internal intercom, but it took a few moments for Tasha to realise that as she opened her eyes, only to quickly close them as her head ached immensely. Slowly she got up and picked up the phone that was on the wall beside the front door.

"Hello?"

"Miss Prentiss its Mark Donnelly the doorman, there's some sort of large delivery outside for you."

"Oh ok, give me a minute and I'll be down."

Tasha grabbed her keys that she had thrown onto the table when she had come in and walked out of the door, not even thinking to check her cell which had been turned off, or the home phone. Not wanting to face the warm brightly lit elevator Tasha headed for the stairs, not caring about the extra time it took her to get downstairs.

"Ah Miss Prentiss, sorry about this but there is a large yellow van parked outside, the driver's gone and there's just a note taped to the front saying that it is for you."

Tasha frowned as she reached into her jeans pocket, only then did she realise that she had left her cell upstairs.

"Can you come with me Mark?"

"Of course Miss Prentiss."

The smartly dressed doorman smiled as he led the way outside, the two of them checked the front of the van but it was empty so they carried on around to the back, Mark fiddled with the handle before he released the latch and the door flew up. Tasha suddenly felt everything drain from her body, scream left her mouth as Mark quickly caught her as the two of them looked at the body encased in ice inside the van.


	34. Chapter 34 Chi

**Chapter 34 – Chi**

Garcia burst into the conference room, quickly all eyes turned to look at her and immediately they knew that whatever she had to say it wasn't going to be good.

"Em your place, Tasha, she's, she's found a body!"

The room fell deathly silent before Emily quickly stood up and ran out the room as Hotch followed after her.

"What do you know Garcia?"

JJ turned and looked at her friend who, still slightly shocked, sat down in the chair vacated by Emily.

"A report came into the police from the doorman, I rang the number he left and he said that he and Tasha found a body encased in ice in a van left out at the front."

JJ nodded as she and the rest of the team stood up.

"Ok thanks we'll call you as soon as we know anything."

"Just give Tasha a big hug from me JJ."

"Will do Pen."

The friends smiled at each other before they parted, Garcia knew that she had to get back and see if she could get any closer to breaking the source of the signal that the unsub was using to track his victims.

* * *

Tasha sat on the chair staring out of the large picture window, hoping that the glorious view of D.C would somehow take her mind away from the horrible images it had just been subjected to. The door to the condo was open, a burly policeman guarding it so Tasha never heard anybody enter until she felt two arms wrapping themselves around her body.

"Mom?"

Tasha quickly turned her head and leant it against Emily's body, the tears suddenly flowing freely.

"I'm here sweetie, its ok you're safe, shh."

Emily held Tasha tightly as she turned her head to look at Hotch who stood protectively over the both of them.

"It's him mom, it was my father."

Emily felt a shiver run through her body, immediately she closed her eyes and bent in against her daughter.

"I'm going down to take a look."

Hotch spoke quietly, he didn't want to leave the two of them but he needed to see for himself what Tasha had discovered.

* * *

As Hotch approached the van he saw the rest of the team arriving but he didn't wait, quickly he walked up to the van and looked in, the warm air had started to melt the ice but the head was not encased so it was easy for him to identify that the body was that of Chris Petersen. Feeling slightly queasy Hotch shook his head and turned away, almost walking straight into Dave who quickly put his hands on his friend's shoulders.

"It's Petersen, the bastard left him as a gift for Tasha."

Dave glanced over Hotch's shoulders and looked into the van before he turned his attention back towards his friend.

"Look we've got things covered here, you go back up and make sure that Emily and Tasha are ok."

Hotch nodded as he reached up and pinched the bridge of his nose.

"Thanks Dave, come up when you know anything."

"Will do."

* * *

Hotch nodded to the policeman as he entered the condo once again, he quickly saw that Emily and Tasha hadn't moved from where he had left them fifteen minutes earlier. Shaking his head momentarily before Hotch walked over and filled the kettle up, retrieving three mugs as he silently made three cups of coffee. He walked back over to the window and sat the three mugs on the floor before he sat on the chair opposite Emily and Tasha, taking a deep breath before he spoke.

"It's definitely Petersen."

Emily nodded her head as she pulled away from Tasha slightly and Hotch could see that they had both been crying.

"I know that I never knew him and he was horrible to mom but I would never with that on him."

"I know sweetie, none of us would."

Emily reached down and picked up one of the mugs and passed it over to her daughter who carefully held onto it.

"Aaron?"

Emily picked up a mug for herself and looked at Aaron who shook his head.

"I left Dave down there, he'll be up as soon as he knows anything."

Emily nodded her head as she turned slightly and looked out of the window.

* * *

Reid stepped up into the van, pulling the latex gloved on as he walked. He bent down and examined the ice carefully, the naked form was encased in it and although the ice had begun to melt it was still clear enough to see what he wanted.

"Umm guys you'd better get up here and take a look at this."

Reid stayed crouching down as Morgan, JJ and Dave climbed up to join him with Morgan moving his sunglasses onto the top of his head.

"What am I looking at Spence, apart from the naked man stuck in a huge cube of ice?"

"Oh eh, here JJ, on the right thigh."

JJ bent down beside Reid and looked through the ice.

"A tattoo, just like the others."

"But not just the one, look."

Reid stood up and slowly pointed to Petersen's left thigh, left bicep and finally the right bicep.

"Four tattoos, that's definitely an escalation."

Morgan took a deep breath as the four of them turned away from the body and allowed the crime scene technician space to carry out their work.

"The four rounds of treachery, I think that the unsub used Petersen for all four rounds, hence the four tattoos, though we can only be sure once we can examine the body more closely."

"If that's the case then..."

Dave frowned as he rubbed his brow but then Reid finished the sentence off for him.

"He's only got one more circle to go, one more victim."

"Come on we'd better go up and fill Hotch in on this."

Dave jumped down from the back of the van and walked towards the building that housed Emily's condo, knowing fore well that the others would be immediately behind him.

* * *

"Here you go cupcake."

Kevin came back into the small dimly lit office, his hands laden with coffee and chocolate muffins.

"Oh great I think that I'm going to need the caffeine, what do you think of this?"

Garcia pushed her chair aside so that there was room for Kevin to see the screen she was currently working on.

"I think that will work, hang on, what's this? Can I?"

Kevin looked at Garcia who nodded her head, it was a professional courtesy as to why he asked as she pushed the keyboard towards him, plus he didn't fancy sleeping on the sofa that night. Quickly he tapped away, flicking from screen to screen.

"Oh no!"

Garcia put her hands up to her mouth as Kevin brought some more information onto the screen.

"The bastard hacked MY tracking system?"

"I'm sorry sweet pea but it certainly looks that way."

"That's why we didn't know about Petersen, he didn't need a device there, he used mine!"

"Aren't you also tracking the Ambassador?"

* * *

He stood at the gate at the airport, black suit, white shirt, black tie, freshly polished shoes and the smartly labelled board with two words adorning it. A polite smiled crossed his face as the figure approached.

"Ah Steven it's good to see you again."

"A pleasure Madam Ambassador please let me take your bags the car is right outside."


	35. Chapter 35 Lambda

**Chapter 35 – Lambda**

They all gathered around Emily's dining table except for Tasha who stood in the kitchen, watching as the team filed in. Tasha had just filled the kettle up and flicked it on as she felt someone behind her, quickly she turned around and felt the tears begin to trickle once again as JJ's arms wrapped tightly around her.

"I'm sorry sweetie, are you ok?"

"I guess so, just a little bit shocked really."

JJ nodded as she let Tasha go, squeezing the young woman's shoulders as she walked away towards the table.

"Hang on Garcia I'll put you on speaker."

JJ sat down as Morgan placed his cell in the middle of the table, all eyes fell on the device as they waited for Garcia to speak.

"Ok I now know why Petersen wasn't on our list, the unsub was using my tracking system to keep tabs on him."

"Are you any closer to tracking his movements then?"

Morgan frowned as he spoke but then he heard footsteps behind him as he turned he saw Tasha bolting away her hand over her mouth.

"I'm certainly getting closer but he may then also be tracking the Ambassador."

"She's due to land today Pen."

Emily's voice was quiet, full of emotion and tension as she spoke.

"Hang on and I'll find out the flight details for you."

"She's due to land at Dulles in forty minutes."

Everyone at the table quickly turned and saw Tasha standing with her arms wrapped tightly around her stomach, her face drained of all colour.

"Ok come on then we'd better get going then, Emily?"

Morgan stood up and looked at his friend who looked as shattered as her daughter.

"I'll take Tasha to the BAU, you can keep us informed from there, I'll see you soon Pen."

"Ok sweetie, drive carefully all of you."

Morgan grabbed the cell off the table as they ran out of the room, Hotch lingering for a second before Emily waved her hand for him to join the others. Slowly Emily walked over to Tasha, putting her arm around her waist to support the both of them as they walked out of the condo and down to the parking garage.

* * *

He dragged her out of the back of the car and removed the mask adorning his face, it was not there to disguise his face but to protect him from the gas he had released as they headed away from the Ambassador's desired location. He was back in the warehouse and he threw the Ambassador over his right shoulder before he walked towards one of the rooms he had built inside, it was the one he used with Chris Petersen and was ideal for the tattooing part of his torture. She was still unconscious as he locked her into the chair which was a nice blessing as it allowed him a bit of time to contemplate what he had achieved so far, he walked out of the room, leaving the door open before he returned with a chair and his messenger bag. He sat down opposite the Ambassador, notebook open on his lap as he began at the beginning, reliving his accomplishments to date.

* * *

Emily knocked quietly on Garcia's door before she opened it and ushered Tasha inside.

"Oh my beautiful angels!"

Garcia turned and quickly got up and hugged Emily and Tasha before Tasha went and sat solemnly in the corner.

"Hi Kevin."

"Hello Agent Prentiss."

Kevin smiled but then turned his attention back towards the screen he was working on.

"PG?"

"I'm narrowing down on isolating the signal that he is using, I've got it down to the outer D.C area but it's still not small enough to be useful."

Emily nodded as Garcia sat back in her chair and looked hard at the screens in front of her.

"Do you mind?"

Emily whispered as she pointed to the spare chair next to Garcia.

"Of course not."

Silently Emily sat down, she wasn't sure what she was looking at on the screen but it was a comfort just to be with her friend.

Garcia's eyes suddenly lit up as she continued to tap furiously away.

"Yes!"

"What?"

"I think I've got him!"

Garcia's voice rose to squeal as Emily leant forward and examined the map Garcia had brought up onto the screen.

"The signal is coming from that warehouse?"

Emily frowned as she tried to memorise the address.

"Yes, whether he is there or not I don't know."

Garcia turned around to face her friend but she had already stood up and moved swiftly to the back of the room.

"Emily!"

Garcia pushed her chair back and stood but Emily had already ran out of the room with Tasha just behind her.

"Sorry Pen."

"Shit!"

Garcia was never one to normally use expletive language but at that moment she couldn't think of anything else to say, devastated she walked back to her desk and picked up her headset.

"Hotchner."

"Sir I've found a location."

"Just what we need Garcia, we've just arrived at the airport but the Ambassador's flight landed twenty minutes early, she obviously breezed through customs and apparently left with a prearranged driver."

"The unsub?"

"I believe so, so any information will be great."

"Ok I've sent the coordinates to you, but Sir..."

"Yes Garcia."

"Emily was in here when I found out the information, she has left with Tasha."

"Shit!"

Garcia instantly listened to the dead line as Hotch cut her off, her heart pounding fast as she wondered what everyone was heading into, without a word to Kevin she pulled up satellite coverage of where the warehouse was and then tried to see if she could hack into any CCTV cameras in the area.

* * *

Quickly he shut the book up as he heard a murmur from the chair, carefully he put the notebook back into his bag before he stood and stretched his arms, walking over to the contrapasso strapped in the chair.

"Glad to see that you are finally awake, I guess I misjudged the amount of gas it would take to knock you out."

"MMmmmfffpphhh."

Elizabeth Prentiss tried to speak but the piece of cloth in her mouth prevented anything other than a muffled noise to leave it.

"Oh sorry I forgot about that piece of cloth, but I think that I'll leave it there for the time being, I believe that you are a fairly vocal woman and for once I want you to sit tight and listen carefully."

He smiled broadly as he ripped the blouse away from the Ambassador's chest.

"Ooosdfsfdshtre."

"I forgot my manners Madam, welcome to hell! You are my special contrapasso, I have travelled far and wide left contrapasso's dead in their own circles of hell, your daughter and her formidable team are nowhere near catching me! So here we are at the end, the centre of hell, you have committed the ultimate sin, treachery against god so you now you must be prepared to pay."

He reached down and picked his tattoo pen up, this was going to be a different tattoo, to reflect the fact that he had achieved his mission, more ornate and intricate than the others, more painful, hence the reason why he had left the cloth in the contrapasso's mouth.

* * *

The tyres on the SUV screeched loudly as Emily heavily applied the brake , the journey had been in silence but as she stared hard at the warehouse Emily remembered that there was another person in the vehicle with her.

"Mom?"

"I need you to stay here Tasha, no doubt Garcia has relayed the information to the team and they'll be here soon."

"Not going to happen mom."

Emily sighed as Tasha spoke firmly and Emily recognised the stubborn tone in her daughter's voice, one that was definitely inherited from her.

"You're unarmed."

"What about your spare?"

Tasha nodded her head to Emily's ankle and without thinking Emily reached down and passed the weapon to her daughter.

"Remember what I taught you, stay close to me and follow my lead ok?"

Tasha nodded as they got out of the vehicle, running towards the warehouse and the unsub.


	36. Chapter 36 The Centre of Hell

**Chapter 36 – The Centre of Hell**

Emily opened the door, her gun drawn as they entered the dark warehouse, she waited until Tasha had followed her in before she closed the door behind them, reaching for her torch as their eyes adjusted to the darkness. Both of them stood still and listened for any noises that might suggest where the unsub was but the vastness of the warehouse was playing against them.

* * *

He couldn't believe his luck as he packed away the tattooing equipment, the Ambassador had lost consciousness a few moments earlier, the pain too much for her body to handle which was really funny considering that the real pain had yet to start. Silently he unstrapped his last contrapasso from the chair and once again lifted her up onto his right shoulder and headed to the internal door that led to the freezer compartment and where Ambassador Elizabeth Prentiss would face the journey to the centre of hell.

* * *

The light from Emily's torch hit the rooms that had been built inside the warehouse and Emily's heart sank, slowly she edged towards them before a tap on her shoulder brought her to an immediate halt.

"Mom?"

Tasha whispered as she looked towards the large power unit that was standing outside one of the internal walls. Emily turned and gestured for Tasha to talk before she too looked back towards the internal rooms.

"He's on the last part of his journey to hell, ready to meet the devil, according to Dante the contrapasso's are frozen and then eaten by the devil. That power unit is big, it is possible that he's got a walk-in freezer there?"

Tasha nodded to the room where the power unit was.

"Shit, right stay closely behind me ok?"

Tasha gave a firm nod of her head as the two of them edged closer to the room.

* * *

Hotch's eyes immediately fell on the silver BMW that was parked outside the warehouse, he didn't need to see the licence plate to recognise who's vehicle it was.

"Emily is already here, any sign of her or Tasha?"

Quickly he exited the SUV and looked over at JJ who had run over to the car.

"No, they have must gone inside already."

"Tasha too?"

Reid frowned as he pulled the flak jacket onto his body but then Morgan walked over to him.

"Emily will look after her, don't worry I've seen Tasha at the range she knows how to handle a gun."

"Well she's Emily's daughter did you expect any less?"

Dave managed a wry smile as he patted his jacket, ensuring that it was strapped tight to his body before he looked over at Hotch.

"OK are we ready?"

Everyone nodded as they drew their weapons and edged warily to the warehouse.

* * *

The freezing temperatures soon had an effect on his contrapasso as he laid her on the floor, it took only a few seconds before her eyes flickered open.

"Oh it's good to see you again Elizabeth, it seems that you prefer sleep to my company, normally I'd take great offence but I suppose that under the circumstances I should allow you a little leeway."

"What, what do you want?"

"To punish you."

"Why?"

"For your sins."

"Against who?"

"Oh where shall I start?"

Elizabeth closed her eyes as he walked towards her, a knife in his hand as he pressed it hard against her neck.

* * *

Emily put her hand on the handle and gestured for Tasha to move away so that her back was against the wall. She gave a firm nod of her head towards her daughter who gave the same gesture in response. Emily felt her heart begin to pound hard and fast as he hand clasped tightly on the handle but she knew that it had to be done and without another thought to what she may find inside the room she opened the door and ran in , her gun drawn as Tasha swiftly followed her.

"FBI, put your weapon down Mr Turner!"

Emily quickly blinked her eyes as she finally laid them on the unsub that they had been chasing for the last month and then her mother, who was being held by the unsub, a knife pressed against her throat, her chest exposed to show a large tattoo.

"Hello Emily, Natasha, well this is a surprise, so you've come to join me in watching your mother, grandmother, pay for her sins."

"Put the knife down and release her."

Emily's voice was unnervingly calm as she spoke, she looked briefly at her mother who was shivering badly but at least the door was now open so some of the freezing air could escape.

"Sorry that's not going to happen Emily, not when I'm so close to the end, so close to finally meeting him."

Emily took a deep breath as Richard Turner smiled, he really thought that he was going to meet the devil if he killed her mother.

"But what has she done to you?"

Tasha spoke as she stepped out from behind Emily.

"Oh look it's the beautiful Natasha, you're certainly looking better from the last time I saw you. Oh come on, the pain and suffering that she has caused the two of you, conspiring with that piece of crap who was your so-called father Natasha, do you want me to carry on?"

Richard Turner smiled as he pushed Elizabeth to the floor, reaching behind him he retrieved a gun and pointed it down at Elizabeth who was sobbing and bleeding on the floor.

"But I have forgiven her."

Tasha spoke confidently as she kept her gun drawn and walked nearer her grandmother, standing in front of her which immediately caused Turner to frown and shift uncomfortably.

"If she has been forgiven then she isn't the perfect contrapasso, no matter what you do it won't be enough for you to meet him."

Emily's voice wavered slightly as she realised what her daughter was doing, she just prayed that Turner wouldn't take his anger out on Tasha.

"But what about you Agent Prentiss, how do you feel about her now?"

Turner snarled loudly as he spoke and watched Emily take a moment.

"I forgive her."

"You're lying!"

Turner shouted as he waved his gun around before pointing it towards Tasha and then a shot rang out.

"Tasha!"

Emily cried out as she ran over and wrapped her arms around her daughter.

"Its ok mom, we're ok."

Emily nodded before she reached down and helped her mother up before she and Tasha helped Elizabeth walk towards the door.

"Did you mean it Emily?"

"Yes mom, I meant it."

Elizabeth nodded her head as she allowed her daughter and granddaughter to help her out of the cold prison but then as they neared the door Emily slowed slightly and looked at the tall figure.

"Thank you."

Hotch smiled as he leant across and kissed Emily softly on the cheek, he knew that he had fired the shot at Turner just in time.

**A/N – Thanks to everyone who is still reading and reviewing, your comments always make me smile and feel appreciated. I've put this comment at the end of the chapter as I didn't want to give away the ending! This will be the last chapter for the next week at least as I'm off on holiday, camping with the kids so no internet or anything, because of that I changed the ending of this chapter and didn't leave it with a massive cliff hanger like I was originally going to do as I didn't feel that would be fair to the readers, having to wait over a week to find out who had been shot! **


	37. Chapter 37 Psi

**Chapter 37 – Psi**

Emily and Tasha were sat in the hospital corridor, right next to a door, their hands were clasped tightly together while Emily rested her head against her daughter's shoulder but neither of them could rest easily as they waited for the doctor to appear from the room.

"Finally!"

Emily quickly lifted her head from Tasha's shoulder and looked at the young female doctor who smiled reassuringly at them.

"Most of the wounds are not too bad, we've cleaned and dressed them, obviously the tattoo is causing her some distress but I've put in a call for a plastic surgeon to come and see her."

"Can we go in?"

"Yes but one at time please, I've given your mother a small sedative to help her relax, I'll be back to check on her in a couple of hours."

Emily quickly stood up as the doctor nodded her head and walked away, Tasha's arm was outstretched as her mother still had a firm grip on her hand.

"It's ok mom, you go."

Tasha felt the blood rush back into her fingers as her mom loosened her grip and turned to look down at her daughter.

"You'll be ok?"

"Yes mom, I'll stay right out here."

Emily smiled and nodded her head before she slowly walked towards the door, her breath caught slightly in her throat as she opened the door and caught sight of her mother looking extremely frail, sleeping in the bed. Seamlessly, in a slight daze, Emily walked over and sat down next to the bed, intertwining her fingers with her mother's.

* * *

Tasha sat back in the chair as she heard the door close behind her mom, resting her head against the wall as finally the hectic nature of the past few hours caught up with her and her eyes quickly closed. Soon Tasha was asleep, for weeks she had been craving a good night's sleep and now that everything had been resolved Tasha thought that it might be time for her body to be kind to her but it was not to be. Almost immediately she was taken back to the warehouse, standing in front of her terrified grandmother when a shot rang out, suddenly everything slowed down and Tasha could see the bullet twisting and soaring towards her. Tasha's eyes shot open, her mouth agape and she could feel the sweat beading down her back, uncertain if any screams had been audible Tasha quickly scanned the corridor but her heart only pounded harder as she saw the tall, dark haired man moving swiftly towards her.

"Tasha, Natasha?"

Hotch had been stood at the nurses' station waiting for someone to give him directions to where the Ambassador was until he caught sight of Tasha and then he saw the panic in her eyes and quickly moved towards her.

"Are you ok?"

Tasha looked up and saw the concern in Hotch's face which only caused her emotions to reach boiling point, without thinking she stood up and allowed Hotch to wrap his arms around her as she sobbed into his chest.

"I'm sorry Aaron, I had a nightmare, I was in the warehouse..."

"Shh Tasha."

Hotch spoke softly as he reached down and stroked Tasha's blonde hair, his eyes drifted to the right and saw Emily's head bowed at the bedside of her mother. Carefully he manoeuvred Tasha back towards the chair and sat down beside her.

"Ok?"

Hotch smiled as he kept a hand on Tasha's shoulder, although he and Tasha were close it wasn't until that moment in the warehouse when he realised just how much he cared for Emily and her daughter.

"Better thanks, moms next door if you want to see her."

Hotch nodded his head but stayed sitting down.

"I think that I'll give her some time with the Ambassador alone for a while."

The smile was still present on Hotch's face as he paused for a moment before he continued.

"That was incredibly brave of you in the warehouse, to protect your grandmother like that."

"I didn't really give it much thought, I was armed but I never thought about using it. I guess that I thought that if he was obsessed about recreating Dante's Circle of Hell as he seemed to be the best thing to do would be to disrupt it, make it so he didn't have the perfect contrapasso."

"Exactly what are you choosing as your major?"

Tasha smiled as she caught the glint in Hotch's eyes.

"English Literature."

"Hmm I guess we won't be seeing you in the BAU anytime soon then?"

"Not if you want any chance at all of your relationship with mom to work!"

Quickly the corridor filled with laughter from the two of them but then it died down as they realised where they were.

"How is your grandmother?"

"As well as could be expected, mostly superficial wounds but the shock was the worst so they've had to sedate her."

"They've got a lot to talk about."

"As the two of you have too, I take it the move is still on?"

Hotch shrugged his shoulders as he cast his eyes towards the room and Emily once again.

"We've not really had time to talk."

"Well the case is over now so no excuses, Jack and I are getting fed up of it, if you don't sort it out soon we'll move in together!"

Tasha grinned as Hotch shook his head, unable to suppress a snort of laughter.

"I'll bear that in mind, how about I go and find us some coffee?"

"Yes please."

Tasha nodded her head eagerly as Hotch stood up, finally she could feel her body relax and her mind stopped whirring incessantly.

* * *

Emily felt her eyes beginning to close, the darkness outside was enough to tell her that it was night time and she was both physically and emotionally exhausted, her head dropped forward slightly before the action woke her up once again. Emily reached up with her spare hand and rubbed her eyes, it wasn't until she opened them that she noticed that she was being watched.

"Mother!"

Emily spoke quietly and she bent closer to the bed as Elizabeth squeezed her daughter's hand.

"I'm so sorry Emily."

Emily had to move her head even nearer to her mother as the whispered words left her mouth, she could see the tears trickling down her mother's face and she could feel her own starting to well up.

"Don't mother, not now."

"We can't leave everything unsaid again Emily, I thought that I was doing the right thing at the time but I obviously hurt you and Natasha deeply."

Emily just nodded her head, the words her mother spoke were quiet but there was a genuine nature to her tone that Emily had never heard before.

"Where is Natasha?"

Elizabeth reached up and wiped her eyes.

"Outside, they wouldn't let us both in, I'll send her in if you want?"

Elizabeth shook her head and took a deep breath.

"Is she ok? What she did earlier..."

Emily smiled as she shook her head.

"Was because no matter what has happened she, we, still love you, you're our family and she couldn't bear to see another person killed."

The tears continued to trickle down Elizabeth's face as she listened to Emily speak, but somehow she managed to get the words out.

"What happened?"

"He killed Chris Petersen and left him outside our house, Tasha found him."

Emily's voice broke as she spoke, the memory of what her daughter had gone through brought back into the front of her mind, but as she looked at her mother Emily saw that she could only shut her eyes and sob silently.

"It's over now though mother, you rest, and there'll be plenty of time to talk later, when you're back home with us."

Emily patted her mother's hand gently, it felt like the right time to bury their past differences and move on, together.


	38. Chapter 38 Mu

**Chapter 38 – Mu**

JJ quietly shut the door and closed her eyes, taking a deep breath before she was sure that there was no more sounds emanating from the bedroom, only then did she slowly walk down the stairs.

"Sleeping?"

"I don't know about that, but they are quiet and not throwing pillows at each other anymore."

Dave sniggered at the thought, he knew that having Jack and Henry sleeping in the same room would lead to a few shenanigans.

"So what did you threaten them with?"

JJ sighed as she sat back down, fed up of being a yo-yo, she just wanted to sit still for five minutes and relax.

"You."

Dave just raised an eyebrow as he poured a deep rich red wine into the two glasses, on another night he would have joked about it but after spending the afternoon and evening at the warehouse he knew that it would be the wrong move to make.

"Here you go cara."

Dave smiled as he passed the wine across to JJ who gratefully accepted it, taking a long sip before she curled up her legs and rested her head on Dave's shoulder.

"It's nice to be finally able to relax, at one point I thought that it was never going to end."

"You and me both cara, I hadn't predicted that he would go after the Ambassador, I don't think I could have forgiven myself..."

"Shh Dave."

JJ reached across and put her fingers on Dave's lips, she knew the guilt that he felt as she carried the same burden.

"Let's not talk about it anymore, if we carry on like this then neither of us are going to get any sleep, I know for one that I'm going to struggle enough."

"Ok but I bet that I can find a way of getting you to relax!"

Dave winked at JJ as he put his glass of wine down and bent across to kiss her gently on the lips.

"Hmmm but we'd better wait until we're sure the boys are definitely asleep before we think about anything like that!"

Dave pouted his lips so much that JJ couldn't stifle her laughter and gently prodded him in the ribs.

"Ok cara I'll wait!"

"Do you think they'll be alright?"

JJ sighed heavily as she nestled in closer to Dave who nodded his head.

"They just need some together, as do we."

"I just hope Tasha is ok, what she did in the warehouse..."

"Was to be expected really, she is definitely Emily's daughter, though she'll need some time."

"I'd like to check on her in the morning."

"Good idea cara, it'll allow Aaron and Emily to have some time together then, I can handle the boys."

"Thank you Dave."

JJ smiled as she crawled up slightly and kissed Dave tenderly on the lips.

"The boys?"

"I'm sure that they are asleep by now Dave!"

* * *

Tasha stood up and stretched her arms, she glanced at Hotch who was asleep in the chair next to her, the clock on the wall by the nurses' station told her that it was the middle of the night. Her tired legs had wandered over to the door and Tasha saw that her mom was still awake, quietly she opened the door and smiled at the tired looking figure.

"Hey."

Tasha's voice was a whisper as Emily smiled back at her daughter.

"Aaron's asleep outside, why don't you two go home and I'll stay her with grandmother?"

Tasha moved quietly towards the chair which Emily was occupying and gently rested her hand on her mom's shoulder.

"Are you sure?"

Emily lent her head against Tasha's hand, as much as she wanted to stay with her mother she was exhausted, she and Aaron needed some time together and she also knew that her daughter and her mother needed to talk to each other in the morning.

"I'll be fine mom."

Emily nodded as she slowly stood up, carefully extracting her hand from the Ambassador's and allowed Tasha to sit down and put her hand into her grandmother's.

"I'll be back in the morning."

Tasha nodded as she bent forward slightly but she still felt her mother's touch as Emily kissed her tenderly on the top of the head and then heard the door close as Emily went to find Hotch so they could go home, together.

* * *

Tasha wasn't sleeping deeply, the chair and the surroundings were part of the reason, the threat of the nightmares returning another, so she was sensitive to any movements that her grandmother made and her eyes shot open when she felt her fingers being gently squeezed.

"Grandmother?"

Tasha lent forward and smiled meekly at the older woman, whose face was still pale and gaunt, worry lines under her eyes seemed to have appeared over night.

"Natasha."

The word was slow and raspy, it was obvious that Elizabeth was struggling as Tasha stood up and moved closer, using her spare hand to bring a glass of water to her grandmother's mouth and helped her take a few sip.

"Thank you."

"It's ok, take it easy, do you want me to get the doctor?"

"No, Natasha please."

Elizabeth gestured for Tasha to sit down and sensing the emotion in her grandmother's voice Tasha obediently did.

"I can't thank you enough for what you did Natasha, I didn't deserve it."

"Of course you did, nobody deserves to suffer like that, and I meant what I said in there, I forgive you."

The tears were flowing freely from both of them as Tasha reached across and clasped her grandmother's hands tightly.

"I'm so sorry about your father."

"He wasn't my father."

"What I meant was I was sorry you had to find him."

Tasha closed her eyes and nodded her head, the only thing she shared with Chris Petersen was some of her DNA, but it still had been a shock to find him dead.

"You know then when you leave you're coming home with us?"

"Your mother did mention something, but I wouldn't want to impose, my house and staff are not far away."

Tasha couldn't hold the laughter back, no matter how hard she tried.

"Yes but we're your family grandmother, we want to look after you, plus you can help us pack as we're moving."

Elizabeth moved her head slightly, she tried to sit up but couldn't quite find the strength to do so.

"Moving?"

"Yes well hopefully, if Aaron and mom finally get some time to sort everything out!"

"Oh."

Elizabeth opened her eyes fully, she had no idea that her daughter was in a relationship and that she was finally happy.

"They are good together, he makes her happy."

"That is all a mother can wish for her child."

Tasha smiled and nodded her head, it finally felt as if things were returning to normal.

* * *

Emily opened the door to her condo and walked into the kitchen, throwing her keys onto the table as she listened to Aaron lock the front door before he joined her, wrapping his arm around her waist before leading her up the stairs towards the bedroom.

"I'm exhausted."

Emily managed a faint smile as she sat on the bed and pulled off her boots, throwing her jacket onto the floor before lying on the bed.

"Aren't you even going to get undressed?"

Aaron smiled as he stripped down to his boxer shorts.

"Too tired!"

"Hmm if I realised that you were that much of a slob I wouldn't have invited you to live with me."

Aaron's smile grew broader as he undone Emily's pants and pulled them off her body.

"So now that this is all over you still want to do this, for me and Tasha to move into your house?"

Emily shifted her body so that she was sat up slightly as Aaron crawled up the bed to be beside her.

"Of course, I know how hard this case has been on you and Tasha but it's over now and I just want to hold you, to protect you."

Aaron leant over and kissed Emily softly on her lips as she closed her eyes.

"But my mother, I told her that I would look after her."

"Don't worry, I understand, anyway we need to do some renovations first before you can move in. I'll have a word with Derek in the morning and see when he can get started."

"Thank you, I don't know how I could have got through this case without your support."

Emily smiled as she moved her head down onto Aaron's chest, closing her eyes as finally she managed to get some sleep.


	39. Chapter 39 Omega

**Chapter 39 – Omega**

"I think that is it."

Emily puffed out her cheeks triumphantly as she sealed the last cardboard box shut.

"Don't you want to double check?"

Tasha grinned as she felt a tap on her knee, she turned to look at her grandmother who was giving her a stern look.

"Oh come on grandmother you know how obsessive she is!"

Elizabeth shook her head as she stood up.

"Well my stuff is all packed so how about I ring my car service and leave you two to sort everything out?"

"But we said that we'd drop you off mother, really it is not a problem."

Emily placed the brown tape on the kitchen counter before she wandered through and stood in front of her mother, smiling at the older woman who, after a week of recuperation looked almost back to normal.

"You've got all this..."

Elizabeth waved her arm around at the cardboard boxes that were littering the condo.

"...to transport over to Aaron's and then unpack."

Elizabeth reached over and put her hands on Emily's elbows forcing her to look into her eyes.

"Thank you for everything Emily, and you too Natasha, but it's time we all moved on with our lives, especially you Emily."

Emily felt her cheeks redden slightly as she saw the glint in her mother's eyes, things were definitely better between them and although the past had not been forgotten it had been forgiven.

"If you are sure, but don't forget you are invited around for supper on Sunday."

"Of course, I'm looking forward to it."

Emily moved slightly and embraced her mother, kissing her gently on the cheek before stepping aside so that Tasha could say goodbye.

"Take care mother."

"You too Emily, I'm pleased to see you happy at last."

Emily shook her head as she picked up her mother's bags and walked towards the door, she could hear Tasha giggling with her mother but instead of being annoyed she was just pleased that they were both happy with each other again.

* * *

Derek threw the last of the equipment into the back of the SUV, he glanced down at his clothes and shook his head as he saw how dusty, dirty and paint stained they were, he rubbed his grimy hands on his cargo pants when he heard a loud cough behind him.

"Oh hey Hotch, I've finished up, you just need to let the paint dry then you'll be good to go."

"Thanks for all your help Derek, I'm not sure that I would have got it all finished in time otherwise."

Derek brushed his hands against his pants one more time before he turned and smiled at Hotch.

"Not a problem Hotch, you know that I love doing this kind of stuff, plus it's a bonus that it is for you and I know that Tasha is going to be thrilled with what we have done."

"You're right there, I take it that you're still ok to come round on Sunday?"

"Of course, are you sure that you don't want me to stick around and help you move all the stuff in? If I know Emily and Tasha then there's going to be a lot!"

Both men chuckled as Hotch shook his head and placed his hand on Derek's shoulder.

"No you're good, go get yourself cleaned up and have some rest."

Derek nodded his head before he shut the door on the SUV and walked round to the driver's door, climbing in before he waved goodbye.

* * *

Tasha puffed out her cheeks as she closed the door on the SUV.

"Are you ok?"

Emily had her hands clasped on the steering wheel as she turned to look at her daughter, who nodded wearily in response.

"Ready for this?"

"Yeah mom, are you?"

Emily smiled and nodded her head enthusiastically.

"This is a big change, for both of us."

"I'm sure we'll cope mom, it's going to be fine you know that, come on we'd better get going Jack will be driving Aaron mad!"

Emily chortled at the thought of the blonde boy getting all excited about the two new additions to his family.

"Yes well I hear that he is already planning to move into your rooms when you leave!"

"Hmm great!"

Tasha smiled as she shook her head, as much as she loved Jack she wasn't planning on leaving anytime soon.

* * *

Emily collapsed flat on the bed, her eyes barely open as she tried to look up at the ceiling.

"Am I keeping you up?"

Aaron grinned widely, his dimples showing as he climbed onto the bed, laying next to Emily as he reached out and took a hold of her hands.

"No, sorry, no!"

"It's ok I didn't realise that moving all those boxes would take it out of me so much too, but at least it is all done now."

"Yes, there's no getting rid of us now!"

Emily cackled loudly as Hotch shook his head.

"It's just the way I want it."

Aaron pulled himself up and bent over, kissing Emily tenderly on the lips.

"Carry on like that and I'll even manage to keep awake for a bit longer!"

"I think I can manage that!"

"Do you think that the kids are asleep yet?"

Emily shifted slightly and looked Aaron deep into his eyes.

"I doubt it, Jack has lots of ghost stories he wanted to tell Tasha!"

Emily laughed as she laid back down, resting her head on Aaron's chest.

"I could get used to this."

"Don't worry Emily, I'm not going anywhere."

Emily smiled as she closed her eyes, finally feeling that she was home and happy.

_**Fin.**_

_**A/N – **_

_**So that is it! Thank you to everyone who has joined me on the ride, it has been a long one but finally it is finished, a heavy tale that certainly was not easy to write. A big thank you to everyone who has reviewed, your comments inspire me and bring a huge smile to me face! I have no plans for a sequel at the moment as I have another tale that I want to write first, it is going to be a Emily Prentiss story, called "In the Heat of the Night Hell Awakens" and this is the summary;**_

_**AU but Emily did face Doyle and 'die' before returning. Yet another secret threatens to tear Emily's life apart as a serious of crimes in Dallas leads the team to question if she is the unsub.**_

_**The first chapter will be up later this week, again thanks for reading.**_


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